OREANDA-NEWS. Anton Gubnitsyn, a veteran public policy and government specialist, today was named Vice President for Government Relations at PBN Hill+Knowlton Strategies.

PBN Hill+Knowlton Strategies is Russia's leading international strategic communications consultancy and in 1994 was the first to establish a western-style government relations and advocacy practice. The firm opened its Moscow office in 1991 and expanded to Ukraine in 1996 and Kazakhstan in 2000. PBN H+K provides its regional and international clients with corporate and crisis communications, marketing and digital services as well as GR and public affairs consulting.

?Gubnitsyn jointly with Alexey Brevnov, Vice President for Healthcare and Government Relations, will lead a team of seven full-time GR specialists and additional senior advisors. Anton's government relations' clients include Castorama/Kingfisher, ICANN, Kinross, Metro Cash & Carry and Praxair, among others.

“Anton has earned the respect of clients and colleagues alike for his ability to soberly assess both governmental relations challenges and crisis situations,” said PBN H+K Strategies CEO Myron Wasylyk. “He provides strategic counsel based on more than a decade of experience in the decision-making processes at the federal and regional levels,” Wasylyk added.

“I look forward to co-leading with Alexei Brevnov the firm's signature government relations and public affairs practice. We always focus on delivering results and solutions to our clients' government relations issues using internationally recognized ethical practices and the sophistication demanded by the Russian market,” Gubnitsyn said.

Before joining PBN H+K Strategies in 2011, Anton worked as Vice Rector for International Cooperation at the Northern Arctic Federal University (NARFU), a Russian Federation Arctic research center for the oil and gas industry. There he was responsible for developing relationships with international partners such as Shtokman Development AG, Statoil ASA, and the Nordic Council of Ministers. Previously, Anton was a civil servant in the local administration before joining the Russian Federation Council as an aide to the Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Northern Affairs and Indigenous Peoples. He began his career as a journalist and speechwriter and participated in numerous political election campaigns.

Gubnitsyn holds a Ph.D. in sociology from St Petersburg State University and a master's degree from the Graduate School of Public Administration at Moscow State University. He completed his postdoctoral studies in communications at Laval University in Canada. He received his B.A. in linguistics from Pomor State University.