Lytvyn Volodymyr Mykhailovych

Three-time Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, figure in the “Cassette Scandal,” and voter for the Kharkiv agreements and the “dictatorial laws”

Doctor of Historical Sciences, academician. From 1994 to 2002 — Head of President Kuchma's Administration. Member of Parliament of the III–VIII convocations. Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada three times: 2002–2006, 2008–2011, 2012–2014. Founder of the “People's Party.” Since 2014 — engaged in academia. One of the longest-serving speakers in the history of independent Ukraine.

“Cassette Scandal,” Gongadze case, Kharkiv agreements, and call to “forget about the EU” in favor of Russia

As Head of Kuchma’s Administration, Lytvyn is one of the figures involved in the “Cassette Scandal” — Melnichenko’s recordings discussing the Gongadze case. Media repeatedly wrote about his involvement; no official charges were filed. In 2010 he voted for the ratification of the Kharkiv agreements — extension of the Black Sea Fleet basing in Sevastopol in exchange for a gas price discount. In 2012 he voted for the Kivalov-Kolesnichenko “language law.” On January 16, 2014, he voted for the “dictatorial laws.” In autumn 2016, publicly called to restore relations with Russia and “forget about the EU.” No criminal proceedings have been personally initiated against him; since 2025 he lives as a recluse, engaged in science and memoir writing.