MOSCOW, May 16. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has released Alexander Avdeyev from his position as Russia’s ambassador to the Holy See (commonly known as the Vatican) and appointed former Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe Ivan Soltanovsky to succeed him, according to a decree published on the presidential website on Tuesday.

Ivan Soltanovsky, 68, graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University) in 1977. He served as Russia’s Permanent Representative to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France, from October 1, 2015 to November 22, 2022. Last March, Council of Europe (CoE) Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric was given a formal notice of Russia’s withdrawal from the international organization, which stated in particular that the CoE had been transformed into "a tool of anti-Russian policy."

Alexander Avdeyev, 76, graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University) and entered the Soviet diplomatic service in 1968. He served as Russia’s Minister of Culture in 2008-2012 before being appointed as the country’s ambassador to the Holy See and representative to the Sovereign Order of Malta in 2013.