Volunteer Sternenko appointed to position in Ministry of Defense: what is known about the appointment
22 January 22:36
Blogger and volunteer Serhiy Sternenko has joined the team of Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and taken up the position of advisor on improving the effectiveness of unmanned aerial vehicles on the front lines. The head of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry announced this on his Facebook page, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
Mykhailo Fedorov said that he recently met with Serhiy Sternenko, who had previously spoken with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to him, the parties agreed to deepen cooperation in order to accomplish specific tasks on the front lines.
“From now on, Serhiy will be my advisor on increasing the use of UAVs on the front lines. His experience will help us realize our shared vision of increasing the effectiveness of unmanned units,” said the Ukrainian defense minister.
Areas of focus for the Ministry of Defense
The head of the defense department outlined the key areas that the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine needs to work on right now:
- basic provision of drone units;
- supply — the military must receive effective weapons that work directly on the battlefield;
- analytics and improving the effectiveness of unmanned systems.
According to Fedorov, Serhiy Sternenko’s expertise is particularly important in terms of analytics and process optimization.
Why this appointment is important
The Minister of Defense emphasized that currently, about 50 units out of more than 400 provide almost 70% of all enemy strikes using drones.
“Our goal is to help the other 350 units grow quickly and significantly increase the scale of destruction of Russian troops. Additional training, analysis of operations, exchange of experience — we will improve all processes based on quality data from the front and feedback from the military,” explained Mykhailo Fedorov.
The Ministry of Defense expects that bringing in a volunteer with practical experience will allow for faster scaling of successful drone solutions and increase the overall effectiveness of the Ukrainian Armed Forces’ unmanned units.
Serhiy Sternenko: what is known about the volunteer
Serhiy Sternenko is a Ukrainian volunteer, blogger, and public figure who became known for his active participation in Euromaidan, countering pro-Russian forces in Odesa, volunteer work after the start of the war, and high-profile criminal cases and attacks against him.
Biography and education
Serhiy Sternenko was born on March 20, 1995, in the village of Sadove, Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi district, Odesa region, into the family of a border guard and a teacher.
He received his education in the field of law:
- in 2016, he graduated from the Odessa College of Economics, Law, and Hotel and Restaurant Business with a degree in Law;
- in 2019, he completed his studies at the Odessa University named after Ilya Mechnikov;
- in 2022, he completed his master’s degree at the Institute of International Relations of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, majoring in International Law.
Public and political activities
Since 2014, Serhii Sternenko has been involved in creating and administering online communities, as well as working as a legal advisor in a private company.
In January 2014, he joined the Euromaidan in Odesa and later became its leader. He also took an active part in the Revolution of Dignity in Kyiv, in particular in the clashes on Hrushevsky Street on February 20, 2014.
After the creation of the Right Sector branch in Odesa in March 2014, Sternenko headed its regional center.
In February 2017, he resigned and left the organization.
Sternenko was known as an active participant and organizer of:
- the closure of illegal drug dens in Odesa;
- the “garbage lustration” of Nestor Shufrich;
- disrupting concerts by artists who supported the occupation of Crimea and performed in the occupied territories.
Court cases and high-profile events
On November 18, 2017, Serhiy Sternenko took part in a protest against the construction of the Summer Theater in the City Garden of Odesa. After being accused of organizing mass riots, he voluntarily reported to the police.
On November 24, the Primorsky District Court of Odessa imposed a preventive measure in the form of 60 days in custody with an alternative bail of 600,000 hryvnia. The bail was paid by the then head of the Odessa Regional State Administration, Maxim Stepanov, but the court of appeal later replaced it with a personal commitment.
In April 2018, Sternenko and his like-minded colleagues created the public organization Nebayduzhi (Not Indifferent).
Attacks on Serhiy Sternenko
In February 2018, the activist was attacked near his home in Odesa and spent a week in the hospital. The attackers were not found.
On May 1, 2018, Abzal Baimukashev, a native of Kazakhstan, shot Sternenko in the neck with a traumatic weapon. In 2023, the attacker was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
At the end of May 2018, a third attack took place. While defending himself, Sternenko fatally wounded one of the attackers, Ivan Kuznetsov, while the other, Alexander Isaykul, was detained by the police.
In December 2023, the Primorsky District Court of Odessa closed the case of self-defense and dropped all charges of intentional murder against Sternenko.
Other criminal proceedings
The activist was also suspected of kidnapping Sergei Shcherbich, a member of the Kominternovsky District Council and head of the Odessa branch of the pro-Russian Rodina party, in 2015.
Sternenko was initially sentenced to more than seven years in prison, but the appeals court later ruled that the statute of limitations for the kidnapping had expired. In 2021, he received a one-year suspended sentence for possession of a single bullet.
Volunteering today
After a series of attacks, Serhiy Sternenko moved to Kyiv.
He is now actively involved in volunteer work, organising large-scale gatherings for the needs of the Ukrainian Defence Forces, and runs a popular YouTube blog where he comments on events in Ukraine and the war with Russia.
