It's a high-wire balancing act - trying to balance pleasing Putin, alongside remaining on the right side of opposing world leaders and security agencies.
Conspiracy theories over the years have noted the alarmingly high number of Russian ambassadors who have died in recent times.
In 2017, a spate of nine deaths of high-profile Russians in nine months led to chatter online - especially as they began on the day Donald Trump was elected president in November.
