Yevhen Petrovych Kushnaryov (; 29 January 1951 – 17 January 2007) was a Ukrainian politician. Kushnaryov was considered one of the chief ideologues of the

Party of Regions A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

and a key ally of Prime Minister

Viktor Yanukovych Viktor Fedorovych Yanukovych (born 9 July 1950) is a Ukrainian politician who served as the fourth president of Ukraine from 2010 to 2014. He also served as the prime minister of Ukraine several times between 2002 and 2007 and was a member of t ...

Early life

Yevhen Kushnaryov was born in

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

to migrants from

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 ...

in 29 January 1951.Kushnaryov.com "Biography"
/ref> Soon after his birth, the family moved to

Melitopol Melitopol is a city and municipality in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, southeastern Ukraine. It is situated on the Molochna River, which flows through the eastern edge of the city into the Molochnyi Lyman estuary. Melitopol is the second-largest city ...

. Since 1958, he studied at eight-year school No. 6, and then at secondary school No. 5, from which he graduated in 1968. Kushnaryov entered the

Odessa ODESSA is an American codename (from the German language, German: ''Organisation der ehemaligen SS-Angehörigen'', meaning: Organization of Former SS Members) coined in 1946 to cover Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Nazi underground escape-pl ...

Institute of Civil Engineering, but after the first year, by decision of his father, he transferred to the Kharkov Institute of Civil Engineering, which he graduated in 1973, receiving a degree in mechanical engineering.

Political career

Kushnaryov became a member of the

Communist Party of the Soviet Union The Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU),. Abbreviated in Russian as КПСС, ''KPSS''. at some points known as the Russian Communist Party (RCP), All-Union Communist Party and Bolshevik Party, and sometimes referred to as the Soviet ...

in 1981. In 1989, during the

Glasnost ''Glasnost'' ( ; , ) is a concept relating to openness and transparency. It has several general and specific meanings, including a policy of maximum openness in the activities of state institutions and freedom of information and the inadmissi ...

era, he joined the pro-democracy movement in the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

. In 1990 Kushnaryov was elected to both the

Kharkiv City Council Kharkiv City Council () is the city council for the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, and is elected every five years to run the city's local government. History Until 1870, members of the city council were elected according to the estate order, and ...

and the Verkhovna Rada, where he took part in formulating the fledgling country's constitution, and in 1994 he became

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

of the city of Kharkiv. Afterwards, Kushnaryov served as

Leonid Kuchma Leonid Danylovych Kuchma (, ; born 9 August 1938) is a Ukrainian politician who was the second president of Ukraine, serving from 19 July 1994 to 23 January 2005. The only president of Ukraine to serve two terms, his presidency was marked by demo ...

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supportin ...

from 1996 to 1998, and as

governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Kharkiv Oblast Kharkiv Oblast (, ), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna (), is an oblast (province) in eastern Ukraine. Kharkiv borders Luhansk Oblast to the east, Donetsk Oblast to the southeast, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast to the southwest, Poltava Oblast to the w ...

from 2000 to 2004. Vladimir Putin 14 December 2001-3

In mid-December 2001, under the leadership of Kushnaryov, a Ukrainian-Russian economic business forum was organized in Kharkiv with the participation of

Ukrainian President The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...

and

Russian President The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the Federal State Council and the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces. I ...

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

. At the same time, Kharkiv was proclaimed "the capital of Russian-Ukrainian relations." On 7 November 2003, Yevhen Kushnaryov, signed an agreement with the

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

of the

Belgorod Oblast Belgorod Oblast () is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject (an oblast) of Russia. Its administrative center is the types of inhabited localities in Russia, city of Belgorod. , the population is 1,540,486. History During the Princely ...

Yevgeny Savchenko Yevgeny Stepanovich Savchenko (; born 1950) is a Russian politician, who is currently the Senator of Belgorod Oblast on legislative authority since 22 September 2020. He had served as the governor of Belgorod Oblast in Southern Russia from 1993 t ...

, on the creation of the

Euroregion In European politics, the term Euroregion usually refers to a transnational co-operation structure between two (or more) contiguous territories located in different European countries. Euroregions represent a specific type of cross-border regio ...

" Slobozhanshchina". Within the Euroregion, relations between areas in many humanitarian and financial sectors have developed. In 2004, the Euroregion "Slobozhanshchina" was included in the

Association of European Border Regions The Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) is an organization of European regions and deals with cross-border cooperation in Europe and other continents. AEBR's main office is based in Gronau (North Rhine-Westphalia), Germany. It also has ...

as an observer. During the

Orange Revolution The Orange Revolution () was a series of protests that led to political upheaval in Ukraine from late November 2004 to January 2005. It gained momentum primarily due to the initiative of the general population, sparked by the aftermath of the ...

, Kushnaryov agitated for the creation of an independent southeastern Ukrainian state in the case of

Viktor Yushchenko Viktor Andriiovych Yushchenko (, ; born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician who was the third president of Ukraine from 23 January 2005 to 25 February 2010. He aimed to orient Ukraine towards Western world, the West, European Union, and N ...

's victory. This caused him to be arrested on charges of

separatism Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, regional, governmental, or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seekin ...

, that were eventually dropped. Following the Orange Revolution, Kushnaryov joined Viktor Yanukovych's Party of Regions and in 2006 he was elected to 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 ...

on the Party of Regions ticket. Kushnaryov quickly became one of the leaders of the party along with Yanukovych and

Rinat Akhmetov Rinat Leonidovych Akhmetov (born 21 September 1966) is a Ukrainian billionaire and businessman. He is the founder and president of international investment group System Capital Management (SCM), and is the wealthiest man in Ukraine. Akhmetov i ...

. Considered by many to be among the party's main ideologues, Kushnaryov could be frequently seen on television debating public policy. In 2005 he published a book ('' Red Horse: Notes of a Counterrevolutionary'') denouncing the Orange Revolution.

Death and remembrance

On 15 January 2007, Kushnaryov was accidentally shot in the liver while hunting with a group of friends and colleagues, and died two days later in a hospital in

Izium Izium or Izyum (, ; ) is a city on the Donets River in Kharkiv Oblast, eastern Ukraine that serves as the administrative center of Izium Raion and Izium urban hromada. It is about southeast of the city of Kharkiv, the oblast's administrative cen ...

. A two-day period of mourning was declared in Kharkiv over the death of the former governor. Yevhen Kushnaryov was survived by his wife, two children, and two grandchildren. In October 2008 a monument to honour Kushnaryov was unveiled in

Kharkiv Kharkiv, also known as Kharkov, is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city in Ukraine.

. The Yevgeny Kushnaryov Foundation for Democracy Initiatives Support was founded in October 2007. The goal of the organisation is "to pursue with the ideas that mattered to him".

Honors and Distinctions

Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise The Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise () is a Ukrainian award. It is awarded for distinguished services to the state and people of the Ukrainian nation in the field of state building, strengthening the international prestige of Ukraine, develop ...

V (1998), IV (2002), III (2004) Class (Ukraine) *

Légion d'honneur The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(1997) (

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

)

Trivia

* Although his Ukrainian name was '' Yevhen'' (Євген), Kushnaryov personally preferred to use the Russified form ''Yevheniy'' (Євгеній) when writing in Ukrainian.Kushnaryov.com "Yevheniy Kushnaryov - Personal Website"
/ref>

References

External links

Personal Webpage

The Yevgeny Kushnaryov Foundation for Democracy Initiatives Support
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kushnaryov, Yevhen 1951 births 2007 deaths Politicians from Kharkiv Russians in Ukraine Recipients of the Legion of Honour Accidental deaths in Ukraine Firearm accident victims Deaths by firearm in Ukraine Party of Regions politicians First convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada Fifth convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada Mayors of Kharkiv Governors of Kharkiv Oblast Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Hunting accident deaths Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 3rd class Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 4th class Recipients of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 5th class