Andri Parubioutstanding Ukrainian politician killed this Saturday in Leopolis, led the National Security and Defense Council, presided over Parliament and was known for advocating the integration of Ukraine in the West and playing a key role in Maidan’s protests.
54 years old, he was shot dead for a stranger on Saturday in Leopolis, west of Ukraine.
Although PARBI had been away from the focus of Ukrainian policy from the election of Volodimir Zelenski As president in 2019, he was still widely recognized for his fundamental role during the turbulent years after the overthrow in 2014 of the then Proruso President Viktor Yanukovich, the illegal annexation of Crimea by Russia and the beginning of the war in Donbás.
A supporter of integration with the West
Born in the region of LeopherParubi participated in Pro-Ukrainian protests while studying history at the university and became a member of the Local Council at the age of 19, just before the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
With relatives who had suffered deportation to Siberia he was a firm defender of the independence of Ukraine and the fundamental role of the Ukrainian language, while supporting greater integration with the West.
Together with Oleh Tiahnibak founded the Nationalist Party Svobodawhich obtained parliamentary representation in 2012.
During the protests of the 2013-2014 maidan, triggered by Yanukovich’s refusal to sign an association agreement with the EU and its failed attempt to suppress the manifestations by force, PARBI managed the camp in the central square of kyiv and organized improvised units of “self-defense”, equipped with wooden shields, to protect the protesters.
In the center of Ukrainian politics
After the dismissal of Yanukovich in February 2014, the interim president Oleksandr Turchinov appointed Parubi Chief of the National Security and Defense Council, where he supervised the Ukraine’s defense strategy at the critical moment of the annexation of Crimea by Russia and the outbreak of the war in Donbás.
Before renouncing in August 2014, Parubi headed the revitalization of the National Guard, part of the defense forces that incorporated volunteers who played a fundamental role in repelling the 2014 Russian attempt to seize Mariupol and remains vital to counteract the ongoing invasion.
In 2014, Parubi survived an attempt to murder when a stranger threw a grenade.
Between 2016 and 2019 he was president of the Ukrainian Parliament and signed a law that in 2019 reinforced Ukrainian as the only state language and introduced measures to protect him from the lasting impact of previous rusification policies.
The former president of the Ukrainian Parliament Andri PARBI
Witnesses say that the attacker, disguised as a dealer and electric bicycle, opened fire and fled. The Ukrainian politician died in the spot, due to the wounds received. The president of the … pic.twitter.com/VvSf8Vt2Bb
– Spanish DW (@DW_ESPANOL) August 30, 2025
Parubi opposed the presidential candidacy of Zelenski in 2019 and described the current president of “Modernized version of Yanukovich” for his apparent willingness to negotiate with Russia and then criticized him for allegedly trying to “usurp the power”.
In 2019, Parubi was re -elected for Parliament as number two in the list of the European Solidarity Party, a key opposition force led by the former president and rival of Zelenski Petro Poroshenko.
After the large -scale invasion of Russia initiated in 2022, Parubi refrained from directly criticizing Zelenski, but condemned the sanctions imposed on Poroshenko by the president.
Parubi always considered Russia as the greatest threat to Ukraine and the world and advocated the dismantling of the “Russian empire.”
Murder details
Parubi walked alone on a quiet street near the center of Leopolis when an aggressor, disguised as a dealer, shot seven or eight times to closeness. According to the police, he died in the place before the ambulance arrived.
The search of the murderer continues, according to President Zelenski, who expressed his condolences to the family of PARBI.
His partner, deputy Irina Gerashchenko, pointed to a possible Russian intervention. “We believe that our eternal terrorist enemy – the Russian Federation and its fifth column – could be behind this brutal crime. Moscow deeply hated Parubi as the founder of a modern Ukrainian state,” he said.
The murder occurs just over one year after another policy, Irina Farion, known for her harsh criticism of the Russian legacy in Ukraine, was shot dead in the leapolis. Although a suspect was arrested, confirmed links with Russia have not been established.
In July, Russian agents shot Ivan Voronich, colonel of the Ukraine Security Service, in kyiv. Sergi Sternenko, a well -known blogger who collaborates in the supply of drones to the Ukrainian army, was injured during an attack ordered by Russia in May, according to the Ukraine security service.
