May 1, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi signed decree No. 267/2025, which implemented the decision of the National Security and Defense Council regarding the introduction of new sanctions. Former adviser to the Office of the President, Oleksiy Arestovych, was among the persons included in the list.
“To implement the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine dated May 1, 2025 “On the application of personal special economic and other restrictive measures (sanctions)” (attached)”. – says the decree.
Sanctions affected 15 individuals and 36 legal entities. The list includes persons who, according to the NSDC, spread Russian propaganda narratives. Among them are the former freelance adviser to the Office of the President Oleksiy Arestovych, political scientist Kostyantyn Bondarenko, Dmytro Vasylets, head of the banned in Ukraine Derzhava party, blogger Myroslav Oleshko, who illegally left the territory of Ukraine in 2023, and others.
They plan to cancel the state awards of Ukraine, block assets, limit trade operations, as well as stop the transit of resources, air connections and transportation through the territory of Ukraine. In addition, the distribution of their media resources in Ukraine is prohibited, and the current licenses for the relevant activities must be canceled.
We will remind that until January 2023, Oleksiy Arestovych held the position of freelance adviser to the head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak. He was fired after an interview with Mark Feigin, in which he suggested that the destruction of a high-rise building in Dnipro during a missile attack could have been caused by the actions of Ukrainian air defense.
Arestovych repeatedly found himself in the center of public resonance due to his statements. Before the full-scale war, he proposed, in particular, to rename Ukraine and deprive Russia of the right to use the name “Russian”. He also stated that in case of further “surrender of Ukrainian interests” by the EU and the USA, Ukraine may reorient to the East.
In September 2024, he was criticized for his comments about women, which caused public outrage. Despite his stay abroad, he repeatedly declared his intention to run for the presidency of Ukraine, calling it his “life goal”.
