Vitaly Churkin, Russia's Ambassador To United Nations, Dies In NYC At 64
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Russia's ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, died suddenly Monday after falling ill in his office at the mission, Russian officials said.
Churkin, 64, was rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center in New York, where he died, Russia's deputy U.N. ambassador, Vladimir Safronkov, told The Associated Press.
Around 9:30 this morning, the FDNY responded to his office on East 67th Street. A law enforcement official told CBS2 he was in cardiac arrest.
Churkin had been Russia's envoy at the United Nations since 2006 and was considered Moscow's great champion at the U.N. He had a reputation for an acute wit and sharp repartee, especially with his American and Western counterparts.
Russia's foreign ministry called Churkin an "outstanding" diplomat and expressed condolences to his friends and family. His death, the day before his 65th birthday, stunned officials at the U.N.'s headquarters.
"Tremendous loss for Russian diplomacy," the Russian Embassy in the United States tweeted Monday.
The United Nations stood and observed a full minute of silence in memory of Churkin, CBS2's Alice Gainer reported.
"Our thoughts go to his family, to his friends and to his government," said U.N. deputy spokesman Farhan Haq, who heard the news from reporters as it circulated during a daily briefing.
Churkin was previously ambassador at large and earlier served as the foreign ministry spokesman. Churkin had a doctorate in history and was a graduate of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations.
Diplomatic colleagues are mourning Churkin as a powerful and passionate voice for his nation, saying he had both a deep knowledge of diplomacy and a large and colorful personality.
"Devastated by passing of Russian UN Amb Vitaly Churkin. Diplomatic maestro & deeply caring man who did all he cld to bridge US-RUS difference," Samantha Power, former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., tweeted.
French U.N. Ambassador Francois Delattre, too, said he and Churkin had "always worked together in a spirit of mutual respect and personal friendship,'' despite their divides. One of Delattre's predecessors, Gerard Araud, recalled Churkin as ``abrasive, funny and technically impeccable.''
Britain's U.N. ambassador, Matthew Rycroft, tweeted that he was "absolutely devastated" to hear of the death of Churkin, "a diplomatic giant and wonderful character."
"Emotional announcement at UN passing away this morning of PermRep Russia Churkin and moment of commemoration and condolences," Karel van Oosterom, Permanent Representative to the United Nations for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, tweeted.
He had a reputation for an acute wit and sharp repartee especially with his American and Western counterparts. He was previously ambassador at large and earlier served as the foreign ministry spokesman.
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