List of ambassadors of Russia to Cuba

The ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary of Russia to Cuba is the official representative of the president and the government of the Russian Federation to the president and the government of Cuba.

The ambassador and his staff work at large in the Embassy of Russia in Havana.^[1] There is a consulate-general in Santiago de Cuba. The post of Russian ambassador to Cuba is currently held by Viktor Koronelli, incumbent since 10 February 2023.^[2]

Diplomatic relations between Cuba and the Soviet Union were established in October 1944. Relations were initially handled through the Soviet embassy in the United States, with the incumbent ambassador to the United States, Maxim Litvinov, was given dual accreditation to Cuba on 17 October 1942.^[3] Litvinov was succeeded as ambassador to the United States, and concurrently as envoy to Cuba, by Andrei Gromyko on 21 September 1943. Following the end of Gromyko's tenure in 1946, representation was by chargé d'affaires at the Soviet mission in Cuba. This came to an end following the 1952 Cuban coup d'état by Fulgencio Batista, whose anti-communist measures involved banning the left-wing Popular Socialist Party. The Soviet government suspended diplomatic relations in protest.^[3]

Relations remained broken off until the success of the Cuban Revolution in 1959, which overthrew Batista and brought a left-wing regime to power under Fidel Castro. Diplomatic relations were restored on 8 May 1960, and Sergei Kudryavtsev was appointed the new ambassador on 8 July 1960.^[4] Representation continued through the late twentieth century. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Cuba recognized the Russian Federation as its successor state. The incumbent Soviet ambassador, Arnold Kalinin, continued as the Russian ambassador until 2000.^[4][5]