According to official documents, Yevgeny Primakov was born on October 29, 1929 in Kiev. This version contradicts the statement of his daughter that his father was born in Moscow. One way or another, but the future statesman spent his childhood in Georgian Tbilisi. In 1953, he graduated from the Moscow Institute of Oriental Studies, and three years later - graduate school at Moscow State University.
Journalist and scientist
Journalism is the first area with which the professional career of an orientalist was connected. This is the official biography of Yevgeny Primakov. The nationality of the eastern peoples, the life of Asia and Africa - that was what interested the young specialist. He worked as a columnist and correspondent for Pravda. As a journalist, Primakov met with many eastern political leaders: Yasser Arafat, Mustafa Barzani, Saddam Hussein, etc.
At the age of 40, the correspondent again went deep into science. In 1977-1985 Primakov was the head of the Institute of Oriental Studies. At the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, the scientist dealt with the problems of world politics, developed new theoretical methods. The biography of Yevgeny Primakov (whose nationality is Russian, maternal relatives were Jews) was also associated with the economy, in which he defended his thesis. For some time, the scientist taught at the Moscow Diplomatic Academy. It was with this period of Primakov's life that biographers associate his first close ties with foreign intelligence and the KGB. However, there is no official confirmation of this.
Primakov wrote many monographs and memoirs. His scientific works concern international subjects. As a scientist, the author investigated the phenomenon of colonialism, the countries of Africa, Egypt of the Nasser era, the path to a peaceful settlement in the Middle East. Primakov also wrote monographs on energy. Memoirs of the former prime minister began to appear in the 2000s. The last such book, Meetings at the Crossroads, was published in 2015.
Personal life
For the first time, a future politician married in 1951. His wife was a student Laura Kharadze. They had two children. Son Alexander became a graduate student at the Institute of Oriental Studies, trained in the USA. He died in 1981 at the age of 27 due to a heart attack. This loss was seriously worried by Yevgeny Primakov. The wife, whose photos in public space are not duplicated, died in 1987. The second wife of Primakova was Irina Bokareva, who for a long time was his official personal doctor.
The beginning of a political career
The political biography of Yevgeny Primakov began in 1988, when he became close to the Secretary General of the CPSU, Mikhail Gorbachev. It is believed that it was the then head of state who insisted that a native of the academic community participate in elections to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. The 1988 campaign was unique. In fact, those elections were the first in many decades on an alternative basis. Among the elected to the parliament then was Evgeni Primakov. The biography of the newly made politician was associated with international relations. He took up them as a member of the Supreme Council.
It was an extremely noisy and vibrant parliament, which was new to Soviet society. Primakov was not afraid to work in a new format. He took part in the first debates of American congressmen and Russian deputies, held live in the form of a teleconference. In 1988, Mikhail Gorbachev made one of his most famous international visits to China. The organizer of the trip was Yevgeny Primakov. The biography, nationality, track record of the deputy - all this was already well known then both to his colleagues around the world and to ordinary Soviet citizens. Primakov entered the galaxy of prominent politicians discovered by Gorbachev perestroika.
The CPSU Secretary General was extremely respectful of Yevgeny Maksimovich. The head of state consistently gave him all new responsible positions. Primakov joined the USSR Security Council, and became chairman of the Union Council of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. This gradual rise was interrupted in August 1991, when the August coup struck. Among those officials who took the blocked Gorbachev from Foros, there was then Yevgeny Primakov. The biography of a politician has passed an important milestone. Now he had to demonstrate his skills and talents in the completely new conditions of a democratic Russia.
Head of the SVR
The relationship between Yevgeny Primakov and Boris Yeltsin was complex and controversial. The President of Russia respected the "patriarch of domestic politics", but in fact he never trusted him. First, due to the fact that Primakov was considered a "Gorbachev man", and in the late 1990s. - already because of the dangerous popularity of the official among the electorate.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union, a personnel vacuum formed in Russia. The authorities lacked people with experience and knowledge. That is why Evgeni Primakov turned out to be so popular. The biography of a politician has been associated with international relations for many years. In this regard, in 1991 he was appointed to the post of the newly created foreign intelligence service.
The main thing that Primakov achieved in this post was that he was able to completely separate the SVR and the KGB, which was soon renamed the FSB. This demarcation is long overdue. Personnel security officers and intelligence officers never especially loved each other, and now, finally, there was a man who resolved these intra-departmental frictions. It turned out to be Yevgeny Primakov. Biography, nationality, the merits of a politician - all this is now widely known thanks to his many years of diligence in various government positions. In Primovov’s SVR, scandals also occurred. The noisiest failure was Agent Aldrich Ames.
Foreign Secretary
In early 1996, Boris Yeltsin appointed Yevgeny Primakov as Foreign Minister. His predecessor Andrei Kozyrev followed the pro-American course. Biography of Yevgeny Primakov, his experience and previous rhetoric said in advance that he would lead Russian diplomacy differently. And so it happened. Primakov was extremely restrained towards the USA. In the first year, he visited 40 countries as a minister, but the States were not demonstratively on this list.
It is believed that Yeltsin appointed Primakov, since anti-American rhetoric in a crisis-ridden country was extremely popular among the masses. The change of course (at least symbolic) was all the more important because the president had the second election on his nose (which he eventually won).
The first thing that Primakov did as a minister was to recapture the famous building on Smolenskaya Square (earlier it also housed the Ministry of Foreign Trade). The new head of the department carried out staff rotation, changed the place of work of diplomats and forced them to travel more around the world so that they broaden their horizons.
Prime Minister
In 1998, default was declared in Russia, followed by the resignation of the government of Sergei Kiriyenko. The State Duma twice refused to return to the post of Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin. In the current crisis situation, Yevgeny Primakov became the head of the government. Photos of the new prime minister did not leave the editorials of newspapers. Formally, this was the peak of his career.
Primakov again had to perform the functions of a “crisis manager”. His government was conservative and somewhat leftist. In the end, the prime minister and ministers managed to lead the country out of an acute crisis. Gradual economic growth began. Inflation has fallen. Active negotiations were held on loans with the International Monetary Fund. The budget for 1999 was adopted immediately in the first reading, which was unusual for the State Duma scattered and mired in internal conflicts. When the Communists initiated the impeachment of Yeltsin, the Prime Minister opposed this idea.
U-Turn
As head of government, Primakov continued his multi-vector foreign policy, which he pursued as foreign minister. March 24, 1999 there was the most striking episode of that premiership. For many, the biography of Primakov, Yevgeny Maksimovich, is known precisely for this occasion - a U-turn over the Atlantic. The Prime Minister flew to the United States on an official visit, where important documents on cooperation between the two states were to be signed. Located over the Atlantic Ocean, Primakov learned that NATO had decided to start the bombing of Yugoslavia. Then the board turned around and returned back to Moscow.
The biography of Primakov, Yevgeny Maksimovich, is an example of a politician who tried to talk with everyone on an equal footing - whether it be Americans or authoritarian eastern leaders. At the same time, the prime minister personally managed to become an authority for everyone with whom Russia dealt.
Resignation
In 1999, Yeltsin and Primakov finally parted. May 12, Sergey Stepashin became Prime Minister. In the dismissed Primakov, Yeltsin saw an increasing threat to his own power. The freed politician was idle. The next elections to the State Duma were approaching. The new block “Fatherland-All Russia” appeared in parliament. Its main figures were Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, Tatarstan President Mintimer Shaimiev and Yevgeny Primakov himself. Biography, family, photo politician - all this again became public.
All 1999, Primakov was the focus of media attention. Widely known throughout the country was the program of Sergei Dorenko on ORT, where he openly criticized the former prime minister. Lobbying the financial interests of the spouse, bribes from the Iraqi authorities - this is far from all that Yevgeny Primakov was accused of. Photos of the family and news about his alleged hip surgery were known to all Russian viewers.
Again in Parliament
Today, many call the ORT information campaign harassment of Primakov, who was rushing to the State Duma. In response to all the new reports on television, the politician publicly only joked and grinned. Already many years later, from an interview with his relatives it became clear that bullying was an extremely painful blow for a Soviet-hardened politician.
One way or another, the “Fatherland-All Russia” block, as well as Yevgeny Primakov, his biography, personal life and other facts about which were previously chewed in the media daily, fell into the State Duma. In parliament, the "new old" deputy worked only two years. At meetings, he always sat next to Vyacheslav Volodin, who, under Vladimir Putin, became deputy head of the presidential administration, and later chairman of the State Duma. The politician called Primakov his main teacher. The attitude to Yevgeny Maksimovich as a senior mentor is characteristic of many representatives of the modern state elite of Russia.
President of the Chamber of Commerce
In the “Putin era”, Yevgeny Primakov, whose biography has already passed all the stages of career growth in the public service, was much less demanded at the top. Affected primarily by the honorable age. Primakov began the political path as a middle-aged man, and at the turn of the century he was already over 70. In 2001–2011. he was president of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Although Primakov faded into the shadows, he never had a conflict with Vladimir Putin. The head of state himself treated the titan of domestic politics with demonstrative respect.
Primakov rarely gave advice to the authorities, his interviews in the media appeared even less often. The politician was generally distinguished by public impenetrability. Journalists often noted that it was almost impossible to pull out something extra from him during the interview. In 2006, Primakov, speaking to senior officials, announced the need to reorient the economy from the “raw material needle” to innovation. Such rhetoric later became the leitmotif of the presidency of Dmitry Medvedev. Also, Yevgeny Maksimovich was chairman of the friendly "Mercury Club", where veterans of big Russian politics gathered. Vladimir Putin regularly reviewed analytical notes and reports from these meetings.
Last years
It is known that shortly before the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, the President of the Russian Federation sent Primakov to them as a diplomat (they had known each other since 1969). With delegations, Evgeni Maksimovich visited Iraq at the end of the Soviet era. Then the American operation Desert Storm was approaching. Primakov removed Soviet specialists and their families (about five thousand people) from Iraq, and also persuaded the country's authorities not to hide behind Westerners with a human shield.
In higher circles, the former prime minister was informally known as "Primus", and on his last 85th birthday he received a primus with the signature "Record 1" as a gift from the president. Primakov last appeared in public in January 2015 at a meeting of the Mercury Club. The politician died a few months later (June 26). The cause of death was liver cancer, which Yevgeny Primakov had been suffering from for a long time. Biography, family, services to the country - all this was again discussed during the funeral and the funeral service. The farewell ceremony with the politician was broadcast live on state television, which once again clearly demonstrated the important place of Yevgeny Maksimovich in modern Russian history.