Kyslytsia Serhiy Olehovych

"Voice of Ukraine at the UN" and architect of behind-the-scenes diplomacy at the Office of the President

Serhiy Olehovych Kyslytsia is an experienced Ukrainian career diplomat, Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador, who in early 2026 took the strategic position of First Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. He was born on August 15, 1969, in Kyiv, and graduated from the Institute of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv with a specialty in "international law." He began his service in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs back in 1992, advancing from intern to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. He gained worldwide fame and respect as the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the UN from 2020 to 2025, where his uncompromising speeches, intellectual sarcasm, and precise historical metaphors dismantled Russian propaganda and became a symbol of the resilience of Ukrainian diplomacy during the full-scale invasion.

Harsh diplomatic battles, criticism of a paralyzed UN, and new behind-the-scenes missions

Serhiy Kyslytsia’s political activity and public speeches regularly become the focus of broad media attention and provoke powerful international resonance. The brightest page in his career is his open play on the international stage, where he repeatedly cornered the Russian delegation in the Security Council, suggesting they "call the psychiatric hospital" or quoting memoirs of Nazi criminals. Recently, the diplomat has harshly and straightforwardly criticized the United Nations itself, openly calling its structure outdated and the chairs in the meeting hall crumbling with age, due to the organization’s inability to stop global wars. After moving to the Office of the President, Kyslytsia has been involved in the most complex behind-the-scenes processes, including attempts to resolve diplomatic crises with neighboring Poland and preparing high-level negotiation tracks with Western partners. Among the latest diplomatic resonance is his public remote exchange with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Kyslytsia sharply and uncompromisingly responded to the U.S. top official’s claim that the war is supposedly fought "only for one region, Donbas," emphasizing that it concerns the existence of all Ukraine as an independent state.