Dimitri Simes

Dimitri Konstantinovich Simes (Russian: Дмитрий Константинович Саймс; born October 29, 1947) is a Russian-American author, editor, and political pundit. He is the former president and CEO of The Center for the National Interest, where he served from 1994 to 2022. Simes was selected to lead the Center by former President Richard Nixon, to whom he served as an informal foreign policy advisor and with whom he traveled regularly to Russia and other former Soviet states as well as Western and Central Europe.

Dimitri K. Simes
Дмитрий Саймс
Simes in 2023
Born
Дмитрий Константинович Симис

(1947-10-29) October 29, 1947
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Alma materMoscow State University

Biography

Simes was born in Moscow to prominent human rights lawyers in the Soviet Union.[1] [2] He is a naturalized citizen of the United States.[3] He immigrated to the United States in 1973, seeking intellectual and political freedom; he had twice been expelled from university in Russia for protesting Soviet involvement in the Vietnam War.[3] Simes's mother, Dina Kaminskaya, was born in Yekaterinoslav and his father, Konstantin Simis, was born in Odesa, UkrSSR.[1][4] In 1977, his mother was expelled from the Soviet Union for working as a lawyer for Soviet dissidents.[2]

Simes authored a book After the Collapse: Russia Seeks its Place as a Great Power (published by Simon and Schuster).[5]

In February 2015, Simes met with Russian president Vladimir Putin and other Russian officials in Moscow.[6]

As publisher of The National Interest, Simes was involved in arranging Donald Trump's April 27, 2016, speech at the Mayflower Hotel. In the speech, Trump outlined his vision for American foreign policy and called for greater cooperation with Russia.[7]

In September 2018, historian Yuri Felshtinsky published an article about Simes' past encounters with unregistered Russian agent Maria Butina.[8]

Simes serves as a moderator of the Moscow-based political program Big Game on Channel One Russia, together with Vyacheslav Nikonov.[9][10]

In June 2023, Simes hosted the annual St Petersburg Economic Forum in Russia and was described by The Telegraph as “an ethnic Russian US citizen who has become a cheerleader for the Kremlin after previously advising Richard Nixon on foreign affairs.”[11] The Kremlin had hoped to find a high-profile host such as an anchor of a major TV network, however, due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine no high-profile host agreed to come, so Simes was invited instead.[12]

Works
  • Simes, Dimitri (March 11, 1999). AFTER THE COLLAPSE: Russia Seeks Its Place As A Great Power. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0684827162.

See also

References
  1. Holley, Joe (July 15, 2006). "Dina Kaminskaya; Lawyer Defended Soviet Dissidents". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  2. Sullivan, Patricia (December 17, 2006). "Konstantin Simis; Critic Of Soviet Corruption". The Washington Post.
  3. Rogin, Josh (May 2, 2019). "Dimitri Simes flew too close to Trump, and his think tank got burned". The Washington Post. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
  4. Sullivan, Patricia (December 17, 2006). "Konstantin Simis; Critic Of Soviet Corruption" – via WashingtonPost.com.
  5. Internet Archive entry
  6. Lynch, Sarah N.; Fabrichnaya, Elena (July 22, 2018). Darlin, Damon; Dunham, Will; McCool, Grant (eds.). "Exclusive: Alleged Russian agent Butina met with U.S. Treasury, Fed officials". Reuters. Retrieved July 26, 2018.
  7. Abramson, Seth (November 13, 2018). Proof of Collusion: How Trump Betrayed America. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1982116088.: 126  book's Index
  8. Who is Dimitri Simes And Why Is He Trying To Sink Mayflower? Investigation by Yuri Felshtinsky GordonUA.com
  9. "Туман войны. Андрей Пионтковский – о времени выбора". Радио Свобода (in Russian). Retrieved January 1, 2019.
  10. "Big Game" (Russian), the official site of Channel One Russia
  11. Kilner, James (June 16, 2023). "Vladimir Putin tells West to 'go to hell' on nuclear arms reduction". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on June 16, 2023. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  12. Kozlov, Pyotr (June 18, 2023). "Why a Soviet-American Thinker Moderated Putin's SPIEF Panel". The Moscow Times.
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