Pavlo Anatoliiovych Klimkin (; born 25 December 1967) is a Ukrainian

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

who from 19 June 2014 until 29 August 2019 served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. A

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

-educated physicist, he has worked in the

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (, ) is the ministry of the Ukrainian government that oversees the foreign relations of Ukraine. The head of the ministry is the Minister of Foreign Affairs. History Originally, the ministry was establ ...

since 1993, with positions including director of the department for the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

, as well as deputy foreign minister in the

First Azarov Government The first Azarov government (, Russian language, Russian: Первое правительство Николая Азарова) was Ukraine's Cabinet (government), cabinet from its appointment on March 11, 2010 until its dissolution on December ...

, where he played a central role in negotiating the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement. Klimkin is also a former (2012–2014)

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

of Ukraine to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

Early life, education

Pavlo Klimkin was born on 25 December 1967 in the city of

Kursk Kursk (, ) is a types of inhabited localities in Russia, city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur (Kursk Oblast), Kur, Tuskar, and Seym (river), Seym rivers. It has a population of Kursk ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

(then the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

); but spent only the first two months of his life there.Klimkin: Russia trying to force renegotiation of Minsk deals

Kyiv Post The ''Kyiv Post'' is Ukraine’s first and most prominent English-language newspaper. It was founded in 1995 in Kyiv by American businessman Jed Sunden. In 2018, the publication was acquired by prominent Ukrainian businessman Adnan Kivan, foun ...

(18 January 2015) In 1991 Klimkin graduated from the department of aerophysics and

space research Space research is scientific study carried out in outer space, and by studying outer space. From the use of space technology to the observable universe, space research is a wide research field. Earth science, materials science, biology, medicine ...

Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT; , also known as PhysTech), is a public university, public research university located in Moscow Oblast, Russia. It prepares specialists in theoretical physics, theoretical and applied physics, ...

, with a

specialist degree The specialist degree is an academic degree conferred by a college or university. The degree is formatted differently worldwide and may be either a five-year program or a doctoral level graduate program that occurs after a master's degree but befo ...

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

and mathematics. Klimkin moved to Ukraine at the age of 24./(website has automatic

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option)''
Short bio
LIGA He was then a research officer from 1991 to 1993 at the E. O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the

National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine The National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (NASU; , ; ''NAN Ukrainy'') is a self-governing state-funded organization in Ukraine that is the main center of development of Science and technology in Ukraine, science and technology by coordinatin ...

Political career

Early positions

In 1993, Klimkin started his career at the

, where he would hold a variety of positions. Early on he served as an

attaché In diplomacy, an attaché () is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified ac ...

and

second secretary Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...

in the department of military control and disarmament, also working in the departments involved with German diplomacy, nuclear and energy security, and economics. By 1997 he was working directly for the future Vice Prime Minister Kostiantyn Hryshchenko, who would later appoint Klimkin as his deputy minister. Klimkin was appointed Minister-Counselor of the Ukrainian Embassy in the United Kingdom in 2004, a position he held until 2008. In March 2008 he was named the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's director for their

department. On 21 April 2010, he became Deputy Foreign Minister in the

of Ukraine. As deputy Klimkin played a central role in negotiating the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement, particularly in its early stages in 2012. According to

Gazeta.ru ''Gazeta.Ru'' () is a Russian news site based in Moscow. In 2012, ownership of ''Gazeta.Ru'' was transferred to Alexander Mamut. In 2020, the state-owned company Sberbank became the sole owner of ''Gazeta.Rus holding company, Rambler Media ...

, during those years Klimkin was "the face of European integration of Ukraine," as he led a delegation of negotiators with the EU. According to ''

Ukrainska Pravda ''Ukrainska Pravda'' is a Ukrainian socio-political online media outlet founded by Heorhii Gongadze in April 2000. After Gongadze’s death in September 2000, the editorial team was led by co-founder Olena Prytula, who remained the editor-in ...

'', the rejection of European integration with Ukraine in November 2013 was "a personal disappointment to Klimkin, who dedicated many months of his life to heissue."

Ambassador to Germany

He served as both Deputy Foreign Minister and Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry until 22 June 2012, when he was appointed Ambassador of Ukraine to Germany. As ambassador he has been influential in a number of international negotiations; in early June 2014, that included talks to stop the fighting in eastern Ukraine, when he met with

Heidi Tagliavini Heidi Tagliavini (born 1950) is a Swiss former diplomat. She is noted for her service with Aid, international aid and peacekeeping missions; a 2003 profile in the monthly magazine of the ''Neue Zürcher Zeitung'' called her "Switzerland's outstand ...

of the

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is a regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization comprising member states in Europe, North America, and Asia. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, the p ...

and the Russian Ambassador to Ukraine,

Mikhail Zurabov Mikhail Yuryevich Zurabov (, ) is a Russian politician. He was the ambassador of Russia to Ukraine According to

AFP news agency Agence France-Presse (; AFP) is a French international news agency headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1835 as Havas, it is the world's oldest news agency. With 2,400 employees of 100 nationalities, AFP has an editorial presence in 260 c ...

, "The talks have since produced a peace initiative that includes Poroshenko's ceasefire proposal and the introduction of a new constitution that gives broader rights to Ukraine's regions - a key Moscow demand."

Minister of Foreign Affairs

Appointment

In early June 2014, Klimkin's candidacy for the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine was proposed by

Petro Poroshenko Petro Oleksiiovych Poroshenko (born 26 September 1965) is a Ukraine, Ukrainian politician and Oligarchy, oligarch who served as the fifth president of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019. He served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Ukraine), Minister ...

, the recently appointed Ukrainian President. On 19 June 2014, 335 MPs of the

Verkhovna Rada The Verkhovna Rada ( ; VR), officially the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, is the unicameralism, unicameral parliament of Ukraine. It consists of 450 Deputy (legislator), deputies presided over by a speaker. The Verkhovna Rada meets in the Verkhovn ...

(Ukraine's parliament) voted for his appointment. This made his approval unanimous, excluding the 35-member faction "Freedom," which didn't vote entirely. Klimkin was sworn in that day. His appointment was met with voiced approval by academics such as Hryhorii Nemyria, and that day Klimkin was congratulated by phone by foreign ministers such as

Laurent Fabius Laurent Fabius (; born 20 August 1946) is a French politician. A member of the Socialist Party (France), Socialist Party, he previously served as Prime Minister of France from 17 July 1984 to 20 March 1986. Fabius was 37 years old when he was a ...

of France, John Baird of Canada, and

Frank-Walter Steinmeier Frank-Walter Steinmeier (; born 5 January 1956) is a German politician who has served as President of Germany since 2017. He was previously Minister for Foreign Affairs (Germany), federal minister for foreign affairs from 2005 to 2009 and again f ...

of Germany. He also met with the OSCE chairman,

. Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister,

Grigory Karasin Grigory Borisovich Karasin (; born 23 August 1949) is a Russian politician and diplomat is currently the Senator from Sakhalin Oblast since 12 September 2019 He served as a State Secretary and a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia ...

, stated on 19 June that "we wish the new minister success and are ready for contact with him," also stating that Klimkin is known in their department as a "skilled diplomat." The following day, Klimkin and the

Russian Foreign Minister The minister of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation is a high-ranking Russian government official who heads the ministry of foreign affairs of the Russian Federation. The foreign minister is one of the five presidential ministers, along ...

Sergey Lavrov Sergey Viktorovich Lavrov (, ; born 21 March 1950) is a Russian diplomat who has served as Minister of Foreign Affairs (Russia), Minister of Foreign Affairs since 2004. He is the longest-serving Russian foreign minister since Andrei Gromyko d ...

, discussed "measures to resolve Ukraine's crisis" on the phone, focusing on Poroshenko's peace plan and controlling the Ukrainian border.

Policies as minister

According to the AFP news agency, Klimkin's appointment "is seen as a step toward better krainianrelations with Russia." Also, according to

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

, Klimkin is "Committed to European integration ith Ukraine andhe has played a key role in negotiating the association and free trade agreements with the

, which Ukraine is expected to sign later n June 2014" On 29 Augustus 2019 Vadym Prystaiko replaced Klimkin as Foreign Minister of Ukraine.

Personal life

Klimkin was married to a fellow diplomat, Natalia, and has two sons. Natalia Klimkina holds the post of first secretary of the Embassy of Ukraine in the Netherlands and is responsible for policy issues and culture. His second wife is Maryna Mykhaylenko, the daughter of a Russian Major General Yury Mykhaylenko. Beyond

Russian Russian(s) may refer to: *Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *A citizen of Russia *Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages *''The Russians'', a b ...

and Ukrainian, Klimkin is fluent in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and has a basic knowledge of

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

and

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

. He has the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine.

Earnings

According to an electronic declaration, in 2019, Pavlo Klimkin received salary of

₴ The hryvnia sign (₴) is a currency symbol, used for the Ukrainian hryvnia currency since 2004. In 2004, when the National Bank of Ukraine approved the ₴ currency symbol for the hryvnia, it was also stated that the symbol could be written eit ...

553,904 (US$20,515) as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and ₴31,253 (US$1,158) as other payments under civil law contracts. On bank accounts (

Savings Bank A savings bank is a financial institution that is not run on a profit-maximizing basis, and whose original or primary purpose is collecting deposits on savings accounts that are invested on a low-risk basis and receive interest. Savings banks ha ...

), Klimkin had ₴2,823 (US$105) and €826. Klimkin also declared US$24,000 and €2,000 in cash. Additionally, Klimkin also declared an apartment (total area of 68,20 m²) and apartment (total area of 108,30 m²) under joint ownership. Klimkin also declared a 2000

Skoda Felicia Škoda means "pity" in the Czech and Slovak languages. It may also refer to: Czech brands and enterprises * Škoda Auto, automobile and previously bicycle manufacturer in Mladá Boleslav ** Škoda Motorsport, the division of Škoda Auto responsi ...

car and a 2019 Mazda CX 5 car.

References

External links

Press Releases about Klimkin
at the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine

Official Twitter page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Klimkin, Pavlo 1967 births Ambassadors of Ukraine to Germany Ministers of foreign affairs of Ukraine Living people Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology alumni Politicians from Kursk Russian emigrants to Ukraine Ukrainian people of Russian descent Recipients of the Honorary Diploma of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine