Vadym Volodymyrovych Prystaiko ( uk, Вадим Володимирович Пристайко; born 20 February 1970) is a Ukrainian diplomat currently serving as Ukraine's Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. He was appointed by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

on 20 July 2020. Prystaiko is a former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and former Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine. Between 2014 and 2019, he was also the

Ukrainian ambassador to Canada Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * Som ...

between 2012 and 2014 and the head of the Mission of Ukraine to

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

from 7 July 2017 to 29 August 2019. In May 2019, Prystaiko served as the Deputy Head of the

Presidential Administration The term administration, as used in the context of government, differs according to the jurisdiction under which it operates. In general terms, administration can be described as a decision making body. United States In American usage, the ter ...

for foreign policy issues. He is a member of the

National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine The National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC; uk, Рада національної безпеки і оборони України, RNBO or RNBOU) is the coordinating state body of the executive power under the President of Ukrai ...

since 31 May 2019. He is also former Vice Prime Minister for

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

and

Euro-Atlantic Integration The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two Nor ...

of Ukraine, serving from 4 March 2020 to 4 June 2020.

Biography

Prystaiko was born on 20 February 1970 in the city of Kiliya ( Odesa Oblast),

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...

. He went to school in

Odesa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrative ...

Kyiv Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...

, and Zaporizhia. Eventually, the family settled in Kyiv. In 1994, Prystaiko graduated ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

'' from the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute's Faculty of Computer Science. In 1998, he received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from the Ukrainian State University of Finance and International Trade. In addition to his native Ukrainian, he is fluent in Russian and

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

. Prystaiko began his career in the

private business A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...

sector. He was a co-founder of one of the first Ukrainian

Internet providers An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...

and electronic media ''Electronni Visti''. In 1994, following his family's tradition of government service, he obtained a position at the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations of Ukraine. At that time, the Ministry was expanding rapidly as Ukraine began to negotiate with GATT/

WTO The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and e ...

. In 1997, he took a position in the economic section of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, where he tried to develop trade with Asian countries. It was the most important task because, at that time, the Ministry initiated negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the GATT/

and started to look for new opportunities for Ukrainian business in the markets, especially in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

and

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

. In 1997, he moved to the Asia-Pacific Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2000, Prystaiko became a consul to

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

where he was involved in political and economic issues. Since 2002, he worked in the Foreign Policy Directorate of the Administration of the President of Ukraine

Leonid Kuchma Leonid Danylovych Kuchma ( uk, Леоні́д Дани́лович Ку́чма; born 9 August 1938) is a Ukrainian politician who was the second president of Ukraine from 19 July 1994 to 23 January 2005. Kuchma's presidency saw numerous corrup ...

. In December 2004, Vadym Prystaiko was appointed as a political

counselor Counselor or counsellor may refer to: A professional In diplomacy and government * Counsellor of State, senior member of the British royal family to whom the Monarch can delegate some functions in case of unavailability * Counselor (dipl ...

to the Embassy of Ukraine in Canada. Two years later, he became the acting ''chargé d'affaires'' (temporary counsel for Ukraine in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

). In 2007, he was a part of Ukraine's NATO negotiating team and served as the Deputy Director-General for NATO in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 2009, he became Deputy Chief of the Mission at the Embassy of Ukraine in Washington D.C. On 8 November 2012, the President of Ukraine Viktor Yanukovich appointed Prystaiko as Ambassador of Ukraine to Canada. He became also a Ukrainian representative in the International Civil Aviation Organisation. In December 2014, he was named Deputy Foreign Minister and head of the apparatus under Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin. He was Head of the Mission of Ukraine to NATO (7 July 2017 – 29 August 2019). On 22 May 2019, Prystaiko was appointed Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration by the decree of the President of Ukraine. He was a Member of the National Investment Council (21 June 2019). On 29 August 2019, he became Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine in the Government of Oleksiy Honcharuk. But on 4 March 2020, he was released from the post and appointed Vice Prime Minister for Euro-Atlantic Integration in the Government of

Denys Shmyhal Denys Anatoliyovych Shmyhal ( uk, Денис Анатолійович Шмигаль; born 15 October 1975) is a Ukrainian politician and entrepreneur who is the current Prime Minister of Ukraine since 2020. Prior to his appointment as prime m ...

. On 4 June 2020, he was released from this post. From 20 July 2020, he is Ambassador of Ukraine to the UK. Since 30 December 2020, Prystaiko is a Representative of Ukraine in the

International Maritime Organization The International Maritime Organization (IMO, French: ''Organisation maritime internationale'') is a specialised agency of the United Nations responsible for regulating shipping. The IMO was established following agreement at a UN conference ...

(IMO). In February 2022, during the

2021–2022 Russo-Ukrainian crisis In March and April 2021, Russian president Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian military to begin massing thousands of personnel and equipment near its border with Ukraine and in Crimea, representing the largest mobilization since the annex ...

, Prystaiko said UK defence secretary's

Ben Wallace Ben Wallace most commonly refers to: *Ben Wallace (basketball) (born 1974), American basketball player *Ben Wallace (politician) (born 1970), British Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace may also refer to: * Benjamin Wallace (circus owner) (1 ...

's comparison of diplomatic efforts with

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

to the

appeasement Appeasement in an international context is a diplomatic policy of making political, material, or territorial concessions to an aggressive power in order to avoid conflict. The term is most often applied to the foreign policy of the UK governm ...

policies of the 1930s was unhelpful. Prystaiko warned, "There's panic everywhere, not just in people's minds, but in financial markets as well" and it was "hurting the Ukrainian economy on sort of the same level as people leaving the embassy".

Family

Vadym Prystayko's father (1941–2008) was General lieutenant of Justice and Vice director of SBU, but since 1991 he worked in a commission of adaptation of laws to EU standards and on rehabilitation of politically repressed. He is an Honored Lawyer of Ukraine. He is married to Inna Prystaiko. They have two sons Volodymyr and Andrii. He likes sports, earning a black belt in Taekwondo.

References

External links

Пристайко Вадим Володимирович
– Vadym Volodomyrovych Prystaiko
Vadym Prystaiko
Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and head of the apparatus
list
of Ukrainian ambassadors in Canada
Vadym Prystaiko
Ambassador of Ukraine to Canada
Event of Empire Club on April 4, 2014, personal career of Vadym Prystaiko
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prystaiko, Vadym Ambassadors of Ukraine to Canada Heads of Mission of Ukraine to NATO Kyiv Polytechnic Institute alumni 1970 births Living people Foreign ministers of Ukraine European integration ministers of Ukraine People from Kiliya 20th-century diplomats 21st-century diplomats National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Servant of the People (political party) politicians Vice Prime Ministers of Ukraine Ambassadors of Ukraine to the United Kingdom

Biography

Family

See also

References

External links