Oleksiy Danilov

Early life and early career Danilov graduated in 1981 from the Starobilsk State Farm Technical School with a degree in veterinary medicine.

In 1999, Danilov graduated from the University of Luhansk as a licensed history teacher.

In the early 2000s, Danilov was a member of the Yabluko party (which was renamed Party of Free Democrats during his membership).

Danilov was elected to the Verkhovna Rada in 2006 for the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc. In the 2007 Ukrainian parliamentary election Danilov ran for re-election to parliament for the Party of Free Democrats, but was again unsuccessful. Since 3 October 2019 he is the Secretary (deputy Chairman, President Volodymyr Zelensky is the formal chairman) of this board.

On 24 January 2022, Danilov said that the movement of Russian troops near Ukraine's border was "not news" and "we don't see any grounds for statements about a full-scale offensive on our country". During the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Danilov urged men eligible for mobilisation to not "hide behind a woman's skirt".

After the 2022 Crimean Bridge explosion Danilov posted a video of the burning bridge alongside a black-and-white clip of Marilyn Monroe singing "Happy Birthday, Mr. President" – a reference to Putin turning 70 the same day.

On 6 April 2023, Danilov stated about a possible peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, which would freeze the conflict and leave the annexed territories of Ukraine, including Crimea, in Russia's possession, that "If Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky proposes peace talks between Kyiv and Moscow, he will commit political suicide."

On 15 March 2024, Danilov was interviewed by Francis Dearnley from The Daily Telegraph. In the interview he was asked multiple questions on the current situation of the war. On the topic of western aid to Ukraine, he said that Western aid needs to be on time and: "If we had a sufficient number, Avdiivka would not be an issue". He also stated that Putin is "Hitler's siamese twin" and that Putin's objective in the war is to exterminate the Ukrainian people and restore the Soviet Union. He then said in a response to a question about NATO troop deployments to Ukraine: "We don't need your soldiers, we need help with weapons. If such assistance is provided, then we are ready to put an end to the issue of Russia once and for all. To finally remove their poisonous teeth so that they will not bite anyone else in the world."

He had been appointed as the next Ukrainian ambassador to Moldova on 29 March 2024, but this did not happen, with Paun Rohovei being officially appointed by decree on 7 February 2025 instead.

Political views In October 2021, Danilov said that he believed that it would be better for Ukraine to be a presidential republic than a parliamentary-presidential one.

Family Danilov is married to Lyudmyla Volodymyrovna Danilova (Peregudova).