What is his business and net worth?

According to Forbes Ukraine , his net worth was $620 million in 2021. As of last year, Medvedchuk owned three Ukrainian television stations, which were blocked by Zelensky as part of the decree to freeze his assets. Zelensky argued that the channels were broadcasting Russian propaganda.

What is his party now?

In November 2018, Medvedchuk was elected chairman of the Opposition Platform-For Life party, which was founded that year after splitting from the Opposition Block party. Medvedchuk’s party is known for its pro-Russian alignment, although Medvedchuk has denied it. If Moscow were to succeed in occupying Ukraine, the party might provide the pool of politicians from which the Kremlin would assemble a government more to its liking.

Why was Medvedchuk sanctioned by the U.S. in 2014?

After Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, the Obama administration moved to sanction Russian government officials along with four other individuals “for their actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine and in undermining the Government of Ukraine.” Medvedchuk was among those sanctioned, along with former Ukrainian president Yanukovych and Crimea-based separatist leaders Vladimir Konstantinov and Sergey Aksyonov.

What is his relationship to Putin?

Medvedchuk’s relationship with the Russian leader stretches back more than 20 years. Putin is godfather to his daughter, and the two men vacation together and meet up to watch Formula One races. Medvedchuk has visited the Russian leader at home in Moscow and Sochi, joining Putin to watch races and combat sambo tournaments. Moscow condemned Ukraine’s 2021 treason charges against Medvedchuk. Putin said it was “an absolutely obvious purge of the political field” that could turn Ukraine into “a kind of anti-Russia.” Mary Ilyushina, Robyn Dixon and Amy Cheng contributed to this report.

Europe

Who is Viktor Medvedchuk, the pro-Russia mogul arrested in Ukraine?

Q: Who is Viktor Medvedchuk?

A lawyer by training, Medvedchuk entered politics in the 1990s by becoming a member of the Social Democratic Party of Ukraine, and was later elected chairman of the pro-Moscow party. He was Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma’s chief of staff from 2002 to 2005 and became the campaign manager of Viktor Yanukovych, a pro-Moscow candidate supported by Putin, in the 2004 presidential election, which sparked Ukraine’s Orange Revolution. After Yanukovych’s defeat, his party suffered in the polls. Medvedchuk focused on building a media empire, holding a 25 percent stake in Ukraine’s most popular TV channel , according to the Atlantic Council, and acquiring other news channels over the years. When the conflict with Moscow-supported separatists ignited in eastern Ukraine in 2014, Ukrainian officials found Medvedchuk to be a useful go-between who could pass messages to Russian officials and help negotiate prisoner exchanges with the militants . This mediator role came to an abrupt end with Zelensky’s victory in Ukraine’s presidential election in 2019. In February 2021, Zelensky signed a decree that accused Medvedchuk of financing terrorism, freezing his assets . In May, prosecutors accused Medvedchuk of high treason and placed him under house arrest.

By Maite Fernández Simon

and

David L. Stern

Updated April 13, 2022 at 1:53 p.m. EDT|Published February 28, 2022 at 4:00 a.m. EST

Ukrainian tycoon Viktor Medvedchuk, left, speaks to Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow in October 2020. (AP)

Pro-Kremlin Ukrainian opposition politician Viktor Medvedchuk was captured Tuesday by Ukraine’s internal security service after being in hiding for weeks, according to Ukraine’s presidential administration. He had been charged with treason last year and escaped house arrest in February, two days after the Russian invasion, according to the Kyiv government.

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In a video message released Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed an exchange of Medvedchuk for Ukrainians held by Russia — an idea that the Kremlin dismissed at a news conference. A photograph released by Zelensky on Tuesday showed Medvedchuk looking disheveled and wearing a military uniform. According to Kyiv, he was dressed as a Ukrainian soldier to disguise himself for his escape.

As the leader of Ukraine’s most prominent Kremlin-friendly party, Medvedchuk has leveraged his proximity to Russian President Vladimir Putin to establish himself as one of Ukraine’s most influential behind-the-scenes political brokers for more than three decades.

Here’s what to know about him.

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