Vyacheslav Ponomarev (public figure)

Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Ponomarev (Russian: Вячеслав Владимирович Пономарёв) (born 2 May 1965, in Sloviansk) is an owner of a soap production company who in 2014 became known as the self-proclaimed mayor of the city of Sloviansk in Donetsk Oblast, a part of Ukraine.

The origin of Vyacheslav Ponomaryov is uncertain. According to the official legend that is promoted by Pravda.ru, Ponomaryov, a Sloviansk native, was an owner of a sawing factory and later a soap producing factory.

He declared himself mayor after leading an assault on the Sloviansk mayor’s office on 14 April 2014, as part of the 2014 pro-Russian conflict in Ukraine. Ponamarev is a strong opponent of the government of Ukraine that formed in Kiev after the overthrow of the country's elected President, and refers to it as fascist. He claims that coalition government in Kiev is run by "Nazis" and "homosexuals". Ponomaryov stated that he would do everything he could to prevent the 2014 Ukrainian presidential election taking place.

Ponomarev has said that he commands around 2,500 men in the vicinity of Sloviansk. He is a veteran of the Soviet war in Afghanistan and served in a "special operations unit" of the Arctic-based Northern Fleet. His men held the elected mayor of Sloviansk, Nelya Shtepa, in captivity, though Ponomarev said that his government was protecting her from Ukrainian law enforcement. He also stated that there was conflict between him and Shtepa, in which she acted "incorrectly". In an interview to Gazeta.ru, Ponomaryov said that he was given protection after the Security Service of Ukraine opened a case against her for separatism.

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