Petro Poroshenko, Ukrainian businessman and politician, 5th President of Ukraine
Petro Oleksiyovych Poroshenko (Ukrainian: Петро́ Олексі́йович Пороше́нко, pronounced [peˈtrɔ olekˈs⁽ʲ⁾ijowɪtʃ poroˈʃɛnko]; born 26 September 1965) is a Ukrainian businessman and politician who served as the fifth president of Ukraine from 2014 to 2019. Poroshenko served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2009 to 2010, and as the Minister of Trade and Economic Development in 2012. From 2007 until 2012, he headed the Council of Ukraine's National Bank. He was elected president on 25 May 2014, receiving 54.7% of the votes cast in the first round, thus winning outright and avoiding a run-off. During his presidency, Poroshenko led the country through the first phase of the Russo-Ukrainian War, pushing the insurgent rebel forces deeper into the Donbas Region. He began the process of integration with the European Union by signing the European Union–Ukraine Association Agreement.
Poroshenko's domestic policy promoted the Ukrainian language, nationalism, inclusive capitalism, decommunization, and administrative decentralization. In 2018, Poroshenko helped create the autocephalous Orthodox Church of Ukraine, separating Ukrainian churches from the Moscow Patriarchate. His presidency was distilled into a three-word slogan, employed by both supporters and opponents: armiia, mova, vira (English: military, language, faith).As a candidate for a second term in 2019, Poroshenko obtained 24.5% in the second round, being defeated by Volodymyr Zelensky. There was no true consensus in the expert community on why Poroshenko lost, with opinions ranging from opposition to intensifying nationalism, failure to stem corruption, dissatisfaction of overlooked Russian-speaking regions with his presidency, to dissatisfaction with Poroshenko's intense conflicts with other pro-Western politicians, such as Andriy Sadovyi and former President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili (with the latter being forced out of Ukraine) and the rise of the pro-Russian Viktor Medvedchuk; Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and anti-corruption activist Denys Bihus accused Poroshenko and Medvedchuk of "secretly working together".Poroshenko is a people’s deputy of the Verkhovna Rada and leader of the party European Solidarity. Outside government, Poroshenko has been a prominent Ukrainian oligarch with a lucrative career in acquiring and building assets. His most recognized brands are Roshen, the large-scale confectionery company which has earned him the nickname of "Chocolate King", and, until its sale in November 2021, the TV news channel 5 kanal. He is considered an oligarch due to the scale of his business holdings in the manufacturing, agriculture and financial sectors, his political influence that included several stints in government prior to his presidency, and ownership of an influential mass-media outlet.