Andrey Artemenko

Andriy Viktorovych Artemenko (Ukrainian: Андрій Вікторович Артеменко, born 14 January 1969) is a Ukrainian politician, the People's Deputy of Ukraine of the 8th convocation of Verkhovna Rada and chairman of the "Solidarity of Right Forces" party.

Artemenko was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship in May 2017 because he acquired Canadian citizenship in 2005.

Education

His parents: Victor Andriyovych Artemenko and Olga Aleksandrovna Artemenko, are professors.

Artemenko started studying in 1976 at school No. 43. Later he moved to school No. 178 due to its high quality of teaching. It was in school that A. Artemenko showed an interest in geography and military training. He paid special attention to geopolitics, history and various forms of government. Later, together with other famous graduates, he provided various welfare assistance to the school No. 178. In particular, it was governmental funding for the completion of a second building.

In 1986, Andriy Artemenko entered Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Department of Electric Power Engineering, and he specialized in energy engineering. From 1987 to 1989 he left his studies in order to serve in the Soviet Army as an infantrymen. He served in various military units throughout the Soviet Union, including Ukrainian and Armenian ones. In May 1989, he was transferred to the Armed Forces reserves of the USSR. After coming back to Kiev, he continued his studies in Kiev Polytechnic Institute.

Start of political career

In 1998, he met the public politician, head of the Kiev City State Administration, Oleksandr Omelchenko. That same year, A. Artemenko took part in election campaign of Omelchenko who was elected the Mayor of Kiev. Together they founded a political party called "Unity".

In 2000, he was appointed adviser for the Mayor of Kiev. Artemenko left his office in 2004.

In 2001, during a campaign to discredit Omelchenko, Andriy Artemenko became a subject of attention by the General Prosecutor's Office because of his close connection to the Mayor. The General Prosecutor's Office questioned him repeatedly.

In spring 2002, trying to increase the pressure on O. Omelchenko, Artemenko was arrested. "It was done deliberately. I was held in different remand prisons (SIZO), sometimes in the same cell with persons sick with pulmonary TB. I was ordered by the heads of security agencies to sign a statement saying that Olexander Omelchenko illegally transferred money from accounts of KCSA to his political project and to a construction project of his son's facilities. I did not know this information, so I could not swear that my political partner and friend did such things," he said.

Because of his strong position on this matter, A. Artemenko was transferred to the SIZO of SBU to solitary confinement, where he spent 9 months without seeing his family or lawyers. Throughout years 2002 and 2003, he was repeatedly demanded to sign the statement. Because he refused, he was sent to Lukyanivske SIZO and imprisoned for another 1.5 years. There he met some of the family members of Yulia Tymoshenko and Mykola Karpyuk, the head of the UNA-UNSO.

On October 22, 2004, A. Artemenko was released on bail of some MPs. All charges against A. Artemenko were subsequently dropped and the courts of Ukraine confirmed the illegitimacy of the claims. He spent as long as 2 years 7 months and 21 days in prison.

Later, on a request of Yulia Tymoshenko, he became one of the leaders of her election campaign headquarters, where he succeeded in gaining many constituencies. In 2006 A. Artemenko was elected as a deputy of the Kiev City Council and led the faction of Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc. He was also a member of Committee for ecological questions of Kiev City Council. A. Artemenko has participated in the development and implementation of many environmental programs successfully executed in urban infrastructure and operating nowadays.

Career in the defense industry

Since 2007 Artemenko founded a number of companies specialized in air transport and military logistics. From 2008 to 2012, his main activities were supporting and providing weapons and military uniforms to the "hot spots" where also the soldiers from Ukraine, Russia and various NATO countries were involved in the special operations. As a part of this collaboration, Artemenko visited the Middle East countries: Syria, Libya, Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan and many others.

In 2012, he participated in the implementation of a major innovative project in Qatar, which is associated with induced effects on the environment in order to increase the humidity and precipitation. "This was a military technology, developed by military engineers. I was personally engaged in the installation of this technology in Qatar," he stated.

In November 2012, with the assistance of Andriy Artemenko, the Embassy of Ukraine was opened in the State of Qatar and the State of Qatar embassy was opened accordingly in Ukraine.

Parliamentary activities

Artemenko defines himself as a neoconservative. He held radical positions concerning urgent changes in the state. Therefore, he responded to the invitation of the leader of the Radical Party, Oleh Lyashko, and agreed to be on the list for early parliamentary elections in October 2014.

A. Artemenko realized Ukraine needed an ideological party. He analyzed the global experience of political systems, taking as an example the activities of political organizations such as the US Republican Party and the UK Conservative Party. Together with other like-minded individuals and following his beliefs, he founded a political party called "Solidarity of Right Forces." It was all done in contrast to the numerous and artificial election projects. The "Solidarity of Right Forces" party set a goal to participate in all upcoming elections: local, parliamentary and presidential.

Andriy Artemenko conducts active parliamentary activity. The politician is the Deputy Chairman of the Committee of the Verkhovna Rada on issues of European integration, member of NATO subcommittee on cooperation and the EU Common Security and Defense Policy. Furthermore, he is a member of subcommittee on economic and sectoral cooperation and a free trade zone with between Ukraine and the EU. Andriy Artemenko is actively pursuing his personal point of view on non-aligned status of Ukraine, on good-neighborly, friendly and mutually beneficial cooperative relations with neighboring countries. He is not a supporter of Ukraine joining any supranational structure, union, or organization.

Andriy Artemenko headed the Inter-Parliamentary Group of Friendship with Qatar, which included 23 MPs. Besides, he is a co-chair of Parliamentary Friendship Group with Slovenia.

On December 25, 2014 the establishment of interfactional deputy union "Solidarity of Right Forces" was announced in the Parliament. Andriy Artemenko initiated the formation of the party and eventually headed it. The members of Parliament are working together on the draft bills aimed to solve middle class problems in Ukraine. In particular, creating a favorable legal environment for business, private property protection and fair trial.

Andriy Artemenko is the author of such draft bills as: number 1601 "On Amendments to the administrative-territorial system of Luhansk region, changing and setting boundaries of Popasnjansky and Slavyanoserbsk districts of Luhansk region", number 1310 "On Amendments to Article 41 of the Law of Ukraine" On Joint Stock Companies" (with respect to the quorum of the general meetings of joint stock companies with majority state corporate rights), the bill number 1736 "On the appeal of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to the European Parliament, the Parliament of the Council of Europe and the national parliaments of the EU Member States, the USA, Canada, Japan and Australia on the issue of the mass shooting of people near Volnovakha", the Resolution number 2066 "On holding parliamentary hearings entitled: "Perspectives of introducing visa free regime for the citizens of Ukraine by the European Union" (May 21–22, 2015).

Trump negotiations scandal

In late January 2017, Artemenko met with Felix Sater and Michael D. Cohen, the personal lawyer of US President Donald Trump, at the Loews Regency in Manhattan to discuss a plan to lift sanctions against Russia. The proposed plan would require that Russian forces withdraw from eastern Ukraine and that Ukraine hold a referendum on whether Crimea should be "leased" to Russia for 50 or 100 years. Artemenko said the plans were encouraged by Russian President Vladimir Putin's top aides and included evidence of corruption that could be used to oust Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko. Cohen presented the sealed proposal to the White House, delivering it to then-National Security Advisor Michael T. Flynn in early February. Valeriy Chaly, Ukrainian Ambassador to the United States, said that Artemenko was "not entitled to present any alternative peace plans on behalf of Ukraine to any foreign government, including the U.S. administration." Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov rejected Russia "leasing" Crimea from Ukraine claiming "we cannot rent from ourselves".

On 20 February 2017 Radical Party leader Lyashko stated that Artemenko's peace plan was "his own position that neither I personally nor our team Radical Party does not support it"; he also announced that Artemenko would be expelled from the Radical Party parliamentary faction. Artemenko was indeed expelled from the Radical Party parliamentary faction a few hours later.

Prosecutors in Ukraine launched a formal investigation into whether Artemenko committed treason.

Family and personal life

Andriy Artemenko is married. He has four children and one grandchild.

On 5 May 2017 Artemenko was stripped of his Ukrainian citizenship by a corresponding decree of President Petro Poroshenko on the grounds that he had voluntarily acquired Canadian citizenship in 2005.