Hero of the Soviet Union Gevork Vartanyan took part in the operation to thwart an assassination attempt on Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt in Tehran in 1943. He died on Tuesday in a Moscow clinic, aged 87.
Vladimir Putin had earlier sent a message of condolence to the relatives of Gevork Vartanyan.
"Gevork Vartanyan lived a long and eventful life, replete with many instances of great heroism. He was a preeminent professional, responsible for many outstanding and legendary episodes in the history of Russia's foreign intelligence service.
Putin arrived at Moscow’s Troekyrovskoye Cemetary and laid flowers at Vartanyan’s grave. He also spoke with Vartanyan’s relatives.
Incumbent SVR head Mikhail Fradkov and several of his predecessors, as well as the Armenian Ambassador to Russia and former colleagues, were among those who came to pay their last tribute to the spying legend.
"Everyone in foreign intelligence will remember Gevork Andreyevich [Vartanyan] for his overwhelming love for the motherland and his fidelity to his duty," SVR spokesman Sergei Ivanov said in a statement.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev described Vartanyan as a "legendary spy, a true patriot of his country and an extraordinary personality."
Vartanyan and his wife worked as intelligence agents in several countries between the early 1950s and 1986, but did not name them. After retiring in 1992, Vartanyan helped train young intelligence agents, the SVR said.
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