Maria Zakharova

Maria Zakharova
Мария Владимировна Захарова[1]
Director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affaires of the Russian Federation
Incumbent
Assumed office 10 August 2015
Personal details
Born	Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova (1975-12-24) December 24, 1975
Alma mater	Moscow State Institute of International Relations

Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova (Russian: Мария Владимировна Захарова; born December 24, 1975) is the Director of the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation^[2] (the official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) from August 10, 2015. She has a degree of Candidate in Historical Sciences.^[3]

Biography

Maria Zakharova was born to a family of diplomats and she spent her childhood in Beijing, where her mother and father worked. In 1998 she graduated from the Faculty of International Journalism at MGIMO in the field of orientalism and journalism. Her pre-diploma apprenticeship (преддипломная практика) was carried out at the Russian embassy in Beijing.

From 2003 to 2005 and from 2008 to 2011, she worked at the Information and Press Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. From 2005 to 2008, she was the press secretary of the Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation to the United Nations in New York.

From 2011 to August 10, 2015, Zakharova was the Deputy Head of the Department of Information and Press of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. Her duties included organizing and conducting briefings of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman,^[4] the organization of work of official Ministry accounts in social networks and information support of foreign visits of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Maria Zakharova is known for her participation in political talk shows on Russian television and for contributing colorful commentary on sensitive political issues in social networks. She is one of the most quoted Russian diplomats.^[5] She is often opposed to Jen Psaki (the official representative of the US State Department before March 31, 2015).^[6]

On August 10, 2015, by order of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Zakharova was appointed director of the Information and Press Department.^[7] Zakharova became the first woman in the history of the department to hold this post.^[8]

In 2016 she was chosen as one of BBC's 100 Women^[9]

Controversy

On November 13, 2016 Zakharova drew criticism for joking on Russian state television that the U.S. election results were the result of a Jewish conspiracy, stating "If you want to know what will happen in America, who do you have to talk to? You have to talk to our people in Brighton Beach, naturally." She also spoke in a stereotypical Jewish accent.^[10][11]

Family

On 7 November, 2005, Zakharova married fellow Russian Andrei Mikhov at the Russian Consulate in New York. They have a daughter Maryana, born in 2010.^[12]

References

External links

• Biography online TASS