Sergey Lavrov (Russia, 1950 – ) served as President of the Untied Nations Security Council seven times throughout his diplomatic career. His terms as President include December 1995, June 1997, July 1998, October 1999, December 2000, April 2002 and June 2003. This, in addition to Russia's permanent position in the Council, gave Mr. Lavrov an intimate knowledge of how the Council functions. Before taking the post of Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the United Nations in 1994, Mr. Lavrov had served in several positions in diplomatic outfits of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in Sri Lanka, USSR and United Nations in New York from 1976 and 1988. This interview was conducted on 18 April 2001, while Mr. Lavrov was serving as the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United Nations. Here, Mr. Lavrov, discussed events which caused division within the Security Council, specifically the implementation and execution of the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) to inspect and remove weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. He also shared his insight on the problems and successes of UNSCOM, responded to criticism of the Security Council and hypothesized about the future of the Council.