Andrii Sharaskin

Andriy Andriiovych Sharaskin (; born 20 September 1977) is a Ukrainian actor, military commander, and politician currently serving as a People's Deputy of Ukraine from the proportional list of the Holos party since 2020. Prior to his election, he served in the war in Donbas, commanding Cyborgs from the Ukrainian Volunteer Corps during the Second Battle of Donetsk Airport.

Early life and career Andriy Andriiovych Sharaskin was born on 20 September 1977 in the western Ukrainian city of Ternopil, then part of the Soviet Union. Sharaskin is a graduate of the Kyiv National I. K. Karpenko-Kary Theatre, Cinema and Television University, and prior to 2013 he was an actor in several television films. Sharaskin founded a Lviv and Ternopil-based children's acting school in 2006, and he additionally directed a children's theatre in Lviv.

Military career Sharaskin was a participant in Euromaidan. He had previously introduced screenwriter Nataliya Vorozhbyt to the Cyborgs during the war in Donbas.

Political career Sharaskin became leader of Right Sector in 2015. He additionally worked as deputy to Dmytro Yarosh after Yarosh left Right Sector to form the Government Initiative of Dmytro Yarosh.

People's Deputy of Ukraine

During the 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election Sharaskin was the 20th candidate on the proportional list of the liberal Holos party, having previously been introduced to the party by personal friend and fellow Cyborg Roman Kostenko.

Following his appointment to the Verkhovna Rada, Sharaskin became secretary of the Verkhovna Rada Foreign Affairs and Interparliamentary Cooperation Committee. In June 2021, along with 9 other People's Deputies from Holos, Sharaskin established the Justice parliamentary group in protest of Kira Rudik's leadership of the party.

Sharaskin has expressed opposition to violence against Ukraine's LGBT community, comparing his position towards the LGBT community to that of Pope Francis, and has condemned threats of violence against pride parades from Right Sector members. However, in the Verkhovna Rada he proposed an amendment to exclude sexual orientation and gender identity from recognised forms of discrimination in media. Sharaskin's amendment, which ran counter to the position of other Holos members such as Inna Sovsun, was unsuccessful. He additionally voted against the ratification of the Istanbul Convention.

Personal life Sharaskin is a Christian. He has one daughter, and briefly lived in poverty while raising her from 2005 to 2006. It is unknown if he is married.