Seasoned envoy comfortable at diplomatic table

Sergey Lavrov is a man of the world and relishes his position at the top table of global affairs, where he can highlight Russia's aims and perspectives.

Since his appointment as Russian foreign minister 10 years ago, his diplomatic skills have been honed against four US secretaries of state: John Kerry, Hillary Clinton, Condoleezza Rice and Colin Powell.

Sergey Lavrov, Russian foreign minister

He once politely chided Clinton for a mistranslation of the Russian word for "reset" on a button that was given as a gift in 2009. The word Clinton used actually meant overcharge.

Later, when Russia blocked attempts by the United Nations for a resolution on Syria, Clinton called it a "travesty". Lavrov retorted that the West's reaction verged on hysteria, an oblique reference to Clinton.

"This brings to mind the saying 'He who gets angry is rarely in the right'," he said.

Born on March 21, 1950, in Moscow, Lavrov graduated from the capital's elite State Institute of International Relations in 1972 and began his career in the Soviet diplomatic service with a posting to Sri Lanka.

According to his official resume, he speaks three foreign languages: Sinhalese, English and French.

After serving at the Soviet mission to the UN in New York from 1981-88, Lavrov remained at the foreign ministry after the Soviet Union broke up in 1991.

He was appointed as Russia's ambassador to the UN later.

Married, with a daughter, his hobbies are playing the guitar and writing songs and poetry.

One poem, which appears to be about turning 40, ends with the line "Weep but keep your powder dry".

He shares a passion for ice hockey with Kerry and enjoys the outdoors. Happiness, he says, is "doing a good job and going white-water rafting afterward with friends". His dominating appearance - he's known for his height and athletic ability - can serve him well in the diplomatic arena where a presence can enhance the confident expression of a viewpoint.

However, his athletic image has to sit with his reputation as a smoker. In 2003, he made headlines when he loudly condemned a smoking ban at the UN as a violation of diplomatic rights.

"He was always looking for a chance to go out and have a smoke," one UN old hand remembers.

But Lavrov knows his beat.

"He does know UN procedure very well. He can be very nice and practical," former US secretary of state Madeleine Albright said.

China Daily-Agencies