Mikhail Bogdanov, a veteran Russian diplomat and long-time aide to President Vladimir Putin, has stepped down from his role as deputy foreign minister, the country’s news agency has said.
The 74-year-old, who also served as Putin’s special envoy to the Middle East and Africa, left the post at his own request, reportedly for personal reasons, the news agency quoted a source as saying.
His departure was confirmed in a presidential decree on Wednesday.
Bogdanov graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations in 1974 during the Soviet era and immediately embarked on a diplomatic career as a regional specialist that took him to numerous capitals.
He served as Russian ambassador to Israel from 1997 to 2002 and ambassador to Egypt from 2005 to 2011.
Under Putin, he served as special presidential representative to the Middle East from 2012, and as special representative to Africa from 2014.
