Vladimir Putin relieved Vladimir Chizhov of his duties as Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the EU and the European Atomic Energy Community in Brussels, follows from the published decree.
Chizhov held his position in this post for 17 years. Earlier, the head of Karelia proposed Chizhov for the post of senator.
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Chizhov stated that Russia's goals in Ukraine were the arrest of Zelensky and the expansion of the "LPR" to the size of regions. A week before the start of the war, Chizhov declared that a Russian invasion of Ukraine "is not foreseen either today or in the foreseeable future." He reported this on February 16 to the newspaper Die Welt – 8 days before the start of Putin's "military operation".