Mr Alexander Khodakov was born on 8 March 1952 in Moscow, Russia. He received his Diploma in International Law from the Moscow State Institute for International Relations, Faculty of International Law in 1974. In addition, he has received a Diploma with distinction in American Law from a special course jointly organised by the Emory University School of Law, Atlanta, Georgia and the Moscow Law Academy. Furthermore, he was a member of the Executive Board of the Russian International Law Association from 1996 to 1998.

Mr Khodakov is a career diplomat. Before joining the OPCW in 2004, he was the Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the OPCW, as well as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Kingdom of the Netherlands from 1998 to 2003. Mr Khodakov has also served in Gabon from 1974 to 1980.

From 1985 to 1991 Mr Khodakov was posted to the Permanent Mission of the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics to the United Nations, New York.

In addition, Mr Khodakov has worked in the Legal and Treaty Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics, between diplomatic assignments, from 1980 to 1991. In 1992 he was appointed as the Deputy Director of the Legal Department for a period of two years and then served as Director of the Legal Department from 1994 to 1998. On 26 January 2004, Mr Khodakov was appointed Director of the Office of Special Projects in the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. In June 2005, he was appointed Director, Secretary to the Policy-Making Organs.

Mr Khodakov is married and has two children.