Andrei Gromyko

Andrei Andreyevitch Gromyko (Андре́й Андре́евич Громы́ко) (July 5, 1909 – July 2, 1989) was a foreign minister and President of the Soviet Union.

Gromyko entered the foreign department in 1939 after Stalin's purges in the section responsible for the Americas. He was soon sent to the United States and worked in the Soviet embassy there until 1943 when he was appointed the Soviet ambassador to the United States. He played an important role in coordinating the wartime alliance between the two nations and was prominent at events such as the Yalta Conference. He became known as an expert negotiator. In the West Mr. Gromyko received very appropriate nickname - Mr. NET (Mr. No).

In 1946 he became the USSR's representative on the United Nations Security Council. He served briefly as the ambassador to the United Kingdom in 1952-1953 and then returned to the Soviet Union, where he served as foreign minister for 28 years. In 1973 he entered the Politburo and continued to rise, eventually becoming President of the USSR in 1985. He was forced out three years later, however, because of his conservative views. He died in Moscow a year later.