Oleksii Arestovych | |
|---|---|
Олексій Арестович | |
_(cropped).jpg) Arestovych in 2021 | |
| Adviser to the Office of the President of Ukraine | |
| In office 1 December 2020 – 17 January 2023[1] | |
| President | Volodymyr Zelenskyy |
| Speaker of the Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine | |
| In office 28 October 2020 – 22 February 2022 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexey Nikolaevich Arestovich (1975-08-03)3 August 1975 (age 50) |
| Nationality | Georgian Ukrainian |
| Political party | Independent |
| Other political affiliations | Brotherhood (2005–2010) |
| Spouse | Anastasia Hrybanova |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Odesa Military Academy Superior Institute of Religious Sciences of St. Thomas Aquinas |
| Alma mater | Odesa Military Academy |
| Occupation | Ukraine's Presidential Office adviser,intelligence officer,analyst,politician,theologian |
| Awards |   |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Ukrainian Armed Forces |
| Branch/service | 1)Chief Directorate of Intelligence 2)72nd Mechanized Brigade |
| Years of service | 1994–2005, 2018–2019 |
| Rank | Lieutenant Colonel |
Oleksii Mykolaiovych Arestovych[a][2] (Ukrainian:Олексій Миколайович Арестович; born 3 August 1975) is a Ukrainian political adviser, former military officer, and columnist. He is also a theologian and the founder of the Apeiron School. Arestovych was a speaker for theTrilateral Contact Group on Ukraine. He worked as a Strategic Communications Adviser for theOffice of the President of Ukraine from December 2020 to January 2023.[3]
He is an active blogger, with almost 830,000 followers onFacebook and more than 1.71 million onYouTube, as of December 2023. Arestovych was among the top 100 bloggers in Ukraine in a poll published byFakty ICTV in 2019.[4][5]
Oleksii Arestovych was born inDedoplistsqaro,Georgia.[6] He is the third child of Nikolai Arestovich, aBelarusian Pole and Tamara Arestovich, aRussian from Voronezh Oblast.[7][8] After graduating from school No. 178 in Kyiv, Arestovych entered the Faculty of Biology atTaras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv in 1992. In 1993, Arestovych began to perform in the modern Kyiv studio Black Square Theater.[9]
In the 2000s, Arestovich was friends with right-wing politicianDmytro Korchynsky and later became his deputy. Together they traveled to Moscow to attend a conference of the Eurasian Movement ofAleksandr Dugin.[10]
Arestovych began conducting online seminars in 2000. In 2003 he entered the author's school "Man among People" created by psychologist Avesalom Podvodny, from which he graduated in 2010.[11][12]
Arestovych also studiedtheology at theSuperior Institute of Religious Sciences of St. Thomas Aquinas.[13]
Arestovych is married Anastasiya Arestovich, and is the father of three children.[14] He has identified himself as a "Russian citizen of Ukraine". He has claimed to have Belarusian, Polish, and Russian blood.[15]
Arestovych is aChristian Orthodox. He has developed a diverse and comprehensive understanding of religious beliefs and theology. His journey into the domains of various religious philosophies and interest in theology from a psychological perspective reflects a nuanced view of spirituality and faith. Arestovych has delved into a wide range of religious literature, analyzing prominent texts in Sufism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity. His studies at Kyiv Superior Institute of Religious Sciences furthered his interest in theology and led to him developing a progressive set of ethics and spiritual values.[13][16]
From 1994 to 1998, Oleksii attendedOdesa Military Academy, from which he graduated as an officer with a specialization in battle application of mechanized units and a minor in Military Translation. From 1999 to 2005 he worked in theChief Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine and is a reservelieutenant colonel.[17][18][19][20]
From April 2014 to August 2015 Arestovich was leading a volunteer military unit Militia Men in the East of Ukraine. He was also preparing combat units and was one of the organizers of a charity fund to support this initiative.
From September 2018 to September 2019, he served as an intelligence officer in the72nd Mechanized Brigade at Svetlodarskaya Duga, he also served atUkrainian Ground Forces Intelligence Office.[21][22]
In June 2009, he was appointed deputy head of the Prymorskyi District Administration of theOdesa City Council,[23] but he was dismissed after three months at his own request.[24]
On 28 October 2020, Arestovych was appointed byLeonid Kravchuk as Adviser on Information Policy[25][26][27] and official speaker of the Ukrainian delegation to theTrilateral Contact Group on Ukraine at theMinsk talks on resolving thewar in Donbas.[26][28][29] On 1 December 2020, the Head of theOffice of the President of UkraineAndriy Yermak appointed Oleksiy Arestovych his unpaid[30] adviser on strategic communications in the field of national security and defense.[3][31][32] Kravchuk, the head of the Trilateral Contact Group, noted that Arestovych's candidacy was chosen because of his military experience and the presence of a vision and position on issues that are the subject of the Trilateral Contact Group.[33]
After the start of the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Arestovych became known for his correct prediction in 2019, that Russia would invade Ukraine between 2022 and 2024.[34][35] From the start of the invasion on 24 February 2022, he held daily briefings on the situation, as an adviser to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.[36][37] These videos garnered him a significant following.[38]
He also held informal daily conversations covering the invasion on lawyerMark Feygin's YouTube channel.[39] On 13 August 2023 Feygin wrote on his Telegram channel that they will no longer hold their talks.[40]
Arestovych is an organizer of psychological seminars and trainings and a charity fund for psychological support to the military.[41]
In August 2022, Arestovych announced that heplans to run for thepresidency of Ukraine if Volodymyr Zelenskyy does not run for a second term.[42][43]
On 14 January 2023, Arestovych made a comment that a RussianKh-22 missile haddestroyed a multi-story residential building inDnipro after the missile had been hit by a Ukrainian air defence counterattack.[44][45] On 16 January 2023Russian presidentVladimir Putin'spress secretaryDmitry Peskov said Arestovych's 14 January explanation about what happened in Dnipro was plausible and put the blame for the destruction on the Ukrainian side. Following the outrage regarding Arestovich's comments, he apologized and resigned on 17 January 2023. Despite his resignation, Arestovych remained active in international forums, discussing Ukraine's geopolitical situation and emphasizing the importance of thinking about regime change in Russia rather than hoping for its disintegration.[46][1][44]
In November 2023 Arestovych argued thatnext Ukrainian elections should be conducted in March 2024 despite the ongoing war in order to legitimize the leadership of the country.[47] He previously criticizedVolodymyr Zelensky and his administration of making inadequate decisions and strategic mistakes during the2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive.[48] On 2 October 2023, People's Deputy of Ukraine Oleg Dunda called to arrest Oleksii upon his return to Ukraine. According to the Secretary of National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Oleksiy Danilov, Arestovych is being suspected by the Ukrainian Security Service for being a Russian spy. Arestovych later left Ukraine saying that he feared being arrested.[47][49]
On 17 March 2022, the General Prosecutor's Office of Belarus opened a criminal case against Arestovych, under Part 3 of Article 361 of the Criminal Code of Belarus “for calls for terrorist attacks” at the facilities of theBelarusian Railway.[50] On 27 July, Arestovych's pages on social networks were included in the Belarusian list of extremist materials by decision of the Leninsky District Court ofMogilev.[51]
On 11 May 2023,Rosfinmonitoring included Arestovych on the country's list of terrorists and extremists.[52] On 3 October, Arestovych was put on the wanted list by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.[53]
Due to a complaint from People's Deputy of UkraineInna Sovsun, an investigation has been opened into Arestovych for comments that allegedly promoted violence against women in a video published on his YouTube channel on 25 September 2023.[48][54] On 16 November, a second investigation was opened into Arestovych for "knowingly filing a false report of a crime"; Arestovych had previously filed a complaint with Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation about "incitement to national hatred and enmity on the basis of language" by MPNataliya Pipa due to her criticism of a teenager singing Russian-language songs in Lviv.[55]
On 1 May 2025, theNational Security and Defense Council of Ukraine imposed personal sanctions against Oleksii Arestovych. According to the decision, he was to be stripped of his Ukrainian state awards, have his assets frozen, face restrictions on trade operations, and experience the suspension of transit of resources, flights, and transportation through Ukrainian territory. Additionally, he was prohibited from distributing his media content within Ukraine, and licenses for certain types of his activities were to be revoked.[56][57]
Oleksiy Arestovych began his teaching career in 2000 and established the Apeiron School for Leadership Development in 2013 as an online institution. The school enrolls students from over 30 countries and offers a curriculum that emphasizes practical applications of psychology and philosophy. Its online courses which include both live Zoom lectures and pre-recorded video teaching material, cover topics such as logical and strategic thinking, decision-making, and negotiation skills.[58]
Since the start of the Russian invasion in 2022, Oleksey Arestovich has supported the army by fundraising and advocating on behalf of Ukrainian soldiers. The following is a list of brigades and divisions that he helped fund: 28, 30, 117 Mechanized Brigades; 47, 53, 59, 82, 93, 110, and А2227 brigades; second mortar battery of the Presidential brigade; “Felix” combat unit; 132nd Separate Reconnaissance Battalion; 5th Tank Brigade (Ukraine).[59]
Oleksiy Aresovych holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.
The list of awards:[60]
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