(MENAFN) Karin Kneissl, the former Austrian Foreign Minister, has been invited to give lectures at Ryazan State University (RSU), as announced by the university's interim rector, Dmitry Bokov. Kneissl visited the university on Tuesday, and Bokov shared a photo of the ex-minister in a Telegram post. Kneissl, who previously served as Austria's top diplomat, will offer lectures on various topics, with her first lecture, scheduled for mid-February, focused on the automotive industry—a subject she explored in her 2020 book. In her social media statement, Kneissl emphasized that most of her predictions about the industry had proven accurate, particularly her assertion that the internal combustion engine will continue to dominate and that many European car factories may become obsolete.

While her lectures at RSU will be a side project, Kneissl’s primary focus remains her role as head of the Geopolitical Observatory for Russia’s Key Issues (GORKI), a think tank she began leading in mid-2023. Kneissl, who has long been known for her close relationship with Russia, was a member of the board of Rosneft, Russia’s state-owned oil giant, until she resigned in May 2022. She has also been a frequent contributor to RT, writing about Russia's relations with the West. Following death threats in 2022, Kneissl moved to Russia, where she now resides in a village in the Ryazan region.

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