Born in Montreal, Quebec, Kinsman graduated from Princeton University in 1963 and the Institut d'études politiques de Paris in 1965. He joined the Department of External Affairs in 1966. During his career, he was the Canadian ambassador to the Russian Federation, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Belarus, Armenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Italy, Albania, and the European Union. He was also the Canadian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Malta. He resigned in 2006.
