 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.