Austria’s Ex-Foreign Minister Takes Teaching Post at Russian University

On 27 Novem­ber 2024, Der Spiegel report­ed that for­mer Aus­tri­an For­eign Min­is­ter Karin Kneissl, who famous­ly danced with Putin at her wed­ding, has accept­ed a teach­ing posi­tion at a Russ­ian uni­ver­si­ty. The arti­cle begins:

The for­mer Aus­tri­an For­eign Min­is­ter Karin Kneissl will teach at the State Uni­ver­si­ty of Ryazan, 200 kilo­me­ters south­east of Moscow. Dur­ing a vis­it by the 59-year-old to Yes­enin Uni­ver­si­ty, an agree­ment was reached: “Karin Kneissl will teach with us,” wrote the uni­ver­si­ty’s rec­tor, Dmitri Bokov, on Telegram. Details would be announced at a lat­er date… [trans­lat­ed from Ger­man by ChatGPT]

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Key Points:

1. Kneissl served as Aus­tri­a’s For­eign Min­is­ter from 2017–2019 and gained atten­tion for danc­ing with Putin at her wedding.
2. After leav­ing office, she worked for Russ­ian state media RT and state oil com­pa­ny Ros­neft before mov­ing to Rus­sia in 2023.
3. She cur­rent­ly heads the Krem­lin-aligned Gor­ki think tank and expressed grat­i­tude for her “new life” in Russia.
4. Her appoint­ment to teach at Ryazan State Uni­ver­si­ty fur­ther deep­ens her ties to Russ­ian state institutions.