Serhiy Volodymyrovych Lyovochkin (Ukrainian: Сергій Володимирович Льовочкін, born 17 July 1972) is a Ukrainian politician, formerly a member of the Parliament of Ukraine. Over 20 years, he has held various leading posts in civil service as well as top corporate positions.[1]
In 1989 he graduated from the prestigious Kyiv school and entered the Kyiv Institute of National Economy (since 1992 Kyiv National Economic University), where he studied until 1993 and received a degree in economics, specialty "Accounting, control and analysis of economic activity." Then there until 1997, a graduate student, Department of Finance; PhD thesis "of US government debt." Candidate of Sciences (1997). In 1999-2002 he studied at the Ukrainian Academy of Foreign Trade, from which he graduated with a master's degree in the specialty "International law".
In 2004 he defended his doctoral thesis on "The economic growth in the context of the Macro-financial stabilization in Ukraine." Author of more than 30 scientific papers, including 2 monographs. Associate Professor of the Department of Finance in the alma mater.
He began his career immediately after finishing graduate school in 1996, deputy chairman of the private bank.
In 1996–1999, the executive director of the Foundation to promote socio-economic development of the Donetsk region.
Since 1999, he entered the civil service. In the 1998 elections, he ran for the deputies of Ukraine in the electoral district in Donetsk region, lost, taking 2nd place.
Lovochkin has worked in administration of President Leonid Kuchma (1999-2004) where he led Group of advisors and economy reforming staff.
During his tenure as Head of Administration for President Victor Yanukovich (2010–2013),[4] Mr. Lovochkin had implemented significant government initiatives, including Program for economy reforms, Chernobyl new sarcophagus Program, Program of non-proliferation of nuclear materials.[5]
On 30 November 2013, Lovochkin submitted a resignation letter as a gesture of disagreement with the violent actions against Maidan activists.[7][8]
On 1 February 2013, Lovochkin and his business associate Dmytro Vasylovych Firtash,[9] a Ukrainian natural gas magnate,[b] purchased Ukraine's Inter Media Group which owns the Ukrainian News and Inter television network, one of the most watched television channels in Ukraine.[9]
In 2014 after the revolutionary events of Euromaidan and to replace of the Progressive Democratic Party, he created a new party, the Party of Development of Ukraine[10] which has the same abbreviation in the Ukrainian language as the Party of Regions.
In September 2014, Paul Manafort traveled to Ukraine and supported the creation of a new Ukrainian political party Opposition Bloc.[3]
On 15 September 2014, following Manafort's advice, Lyovochkin's Party of Development of Ukraine united with 5 other parties to form the Opposition Bloc.[11][12]
Lovochkin stated in October 2014 that Crimea was annexed by Russia in March 2014 because Russian President Vladimir "Putin was betrayed by our irresponsible leaders too many times, until he stopped taking Ukraine seriously".[16]
Lovochkin was re-elected, placed 5th on the party list of Opposition Platform — For Life this time, in the 2019 parliamentary election.[20] His sister Yulia Lovochkin (Ukrainian: Юлія Льовочкіна) was also elected for the same party (22nd on the party list).[20]
On 23 March 2023, the Rada expelled Lyovochkin from the Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence. He is reported to have left the country immediately after the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.[21]
2016 Donald Trump campaign and Special Counsel investigation
Lyovochkin is the founder of the New Ukraine Institute of Strategic Research. At this time, the institute is focusing on such areas as reforms in Ukraine, environmental and humanitarian issues, Minsk peace reestablishment process.[32][33]
Lyovochkin has a Doctor degree in Economics (2004) and has authored 35 publications on economic issues.
He defended his thesis on the topics “National Debt of the United States of America" (1997) and “Macro-financial Stabilization in the Context of Economic Growth in Ukraine" (2004).
^Through Rinat Akhmetov and following the Orange Revolution, Paul Manafort began advising pro-Russia Victor Yanukovych in Yanukovych's quest to defeat his pro-Western rival Viktor A. Yushchenko.[3]
^Manafort has rejected questions about whether Kilimnik, with whom he consulted regularly, might be in league with Russian intelligence.[26] According to Yuri Shvets, Kilimnik previously worked for the GRU, and every bit of information about Kilimnik's work with Manafort went directly to Russian intelligence.[27]
