While noting “fundamental differences” with Churkin’s political positions and how he presented them, that divide “does not put us away from our point of expressing human condolences,” Klimkin said.

From Moscow’s vantage point, “Churkin was like a rock against which were broken the attempts by our enemies to undermine what constitutes the glory of Russia,” TASS quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov as saying.

Churkin’s U.N. counterparts “experienced and respected the pride that he took in serving his country and the passion and, at times, very stern resolution that he brought to his job,” said General Assembly President Peter Thomson, of Fiji. But colleagues also respected Churkin’s intellect, diplomatic skills, good humor and consideration for others, said Thomson, who called for a moment of silence at the start of an unrelated meeting Monday.

Churkin emerged as the face of a new approach to foreign affairs by the Soviet Union in 1986, when he testified before the U.S. Congress about the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster. His fluent English, fashionable appearance and friendly, sometimes humorous, exchange with lawmakers marked a departure from the tone lawmakers had come to expect from the Soviet Union.