Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday appointed deputy foreign minister Anatoly Antonov as the country's new ambassador to the United States, replacing Sergei Kislyak.

"By presidential decree, Anatoly Ivanovich Antonov is appointed Russian Ambassador to the United States," the Kremlin said in a statement. Relations between Russia and the United States have fallen to a post-Cold War low, driven by accusations of Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential elections.