Rustem Umerov

In September 2022, The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has appointed Rustem Umerov, Member of Parliament from the Holos [Voice] political party, as President / Head of the Ukrainian State Property Fund.

Umerov was present at during peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in March 2022 following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to the independent newspaper Meduza, Umerov was accused by the Kremlin and Russian state-controlled media of being an American spy, and deliberately prolonging the negotiations to Ukraine's advantage. On 28 March, it was reported that Umerov, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, and another lawmaker all suffered symptoms similar to poisoning after the event, including "red eyes, constant and painful tearing, and peeling skin on their hands and faces". The three negotiators flew to Istanbul, Turkey, to receive medical attention for their symptoms. However, Umerov later wrote on Facebook that he was "fine", calling for people to not trust "unverified information".

In January 2021, as part of a delegation to the PACE winter session, he raised the issue of violation of the rights of Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars in Crimea by the Russian occupiers. The point is that Ukrainians and Crimean Tatars, due to their ethnic affiliation and Ukrainian position, are subject to inspections by the occupation administration. This results in repression and illegal sentences. Another manifestation of ethnic profiling is the failure to provide medical care to Kremlin political hostages.

Since December 2020, he has been the co-chairman of the Crimea Platform parliamentary association in the Verkhovna Rada.

Umerov co-chairs the group for inter-parliamentary relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, co-chair of the group for inter-parliamentary relations with the Republic of Turkey. Since December 2020, he has been co-chair of the Crimea Platform parliamentary association.

In May 2020, he was one of the authors of the law on the payment of hospital bills to physicians because of COVID-19, regardless of the length of service and at 100% of the average salary.

In September 2020, together with other deputies, he initiated a resolution to the government on the redistribution of money from the Fund to Fight COVID-19 to ensure a safe educational process and quality education in quarantine.

Umerov is one of the authors of the bill, which establishes the procedure for recognition as a stateless person. This law will allow such persons to legally stay on the territory of Ukraine and obtain a document certifying their identity and confirming the legality of residence on the territory of Ukraine. The law came into force on July 18, 2020.

He collaborated on a bill that exempts internally displaced persons from paying tourist tax for living in temporary accommodation was submitted to parliament and approved. On October 12, 2020, the President signed the law.

In May 2020, Umerov initiated an appeal to the UN, the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assemblies of the Council of Europe, the OSCE, NATO, the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, and governments and parliaments of the world to honor the victims of the genocide of the Crimean Tatar people and condemn Russia's violations of the rights and freedoms of Crimean Tatars.. The appeal was supported by 310 deputies [28].

In December 2020, the Crimea Platform as established in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's national parliament. Rustem Umerov was elected co-chairman of the association together with Mustafa Dzhemilev, Ahtem Chiygoz, Yelyzaveta Yasko, and Vadym Halaichuk [ru]. The purpose of the association is to form and implement a parliamentary track within the framework of a unified state strategy of de-occupation and reintegration of Crimea, creation of an inter-parliamentary assembly to advocate the restoration of control over parts of the Black and Azov Seas.

In 2020, from the rostrum of the Verkhovna Rada, he initiated the establishment of an Interdepartmental Coordination Center, which will focus exclusively on the release of Ukrainian political prisoners.

Umerov constantly communicates with the state authorities of Ukraine on the exchange of Crimean political prisoners and prisoners of war. In July 2020, he initiated a statement by the Verkhovna Rada on the illegitimacy of an all-Russian vote on amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation on Crimean territory. The initiative was supported by 306 deputies.

In March 2020, Umerov initiated parliamentary hearings on the de-occupation and reintegration of Crimea and Sevastopol. The purpose of the hearings is to develop a single strategic document on the return of Crimea and Sevastopol to Ukraine. This document should be part of the Development Strategy of Ukraine-2030.

In September 2020, Umerov joined a group to develop a state strategy for the de-occupation of Crimea and Sevastopol, which was established under the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. His candidacy was supported by the parliamentary Human Rights Committee. On March 24, President Volodymyr Zelensky approved a decree of the National Security and Defense Council on the strategy of de-occupation of Crimea.

In May 2020, thanks to the support of the ASTEM Foundation, the raid tug "Yany Kapu" of the Ukrainian Navy, damaged by the Russian military during the Kerch Strait incident, was repaired. The raid tug was captured by Russia in November 2018 near the Kerch Strait.

Since 2019, he has been a Ukrainian member of parliament from the Holos (English: "Voice") political party.

In July 2019, in the snap parliamentary elections to the Verkhovna Rada, he was elected People's Deputy of Ukraine from the Holos party.

In 2017, Umerov facilitated the release of two Kremlin political prisoners, Crimean Tatars Ahtem Chiygoz and Ilmi Umerov [ru].

In 2014, he was one of the founders of the “Evkaf” Charitable Foundation, established to assist in the development of Muslim communities and the institution of charity, as well as to promote civic activism.

In 2014, he assisted in the creation of the Cultural Heritage Fund. The fund carries out its activities in the interests of the indigenous peoples of Crimea, as well as protects the rights and fundamental freedoms of citizens in education, culture, and art, protection of cultural heritage, health, and environment, social protection, development of territorial communities.

In 2013, together with his brother Aslan Omer Qirimli founded the investment company ASTEM and the charity fund ASTEM Foundation. ASTEM manages investments in the fields of communications, information technology, and infrastructure. ASTEM Foundation is one of the donors of the Ukrainian Emerging Leaders program at Stanford University.

In 2012, the Umerov family initiated the restoration of the Orta Cami Mosque, an architectural monument of the 16th and 17th centuries in Bakhchysarai (Crimea). Funding was provided by the Umerov family. The implementation of the initiative started within the framework of the national project for the restoration of the cultural and historical heritage of Crimea. On August 16, 2013, the historically reconstructed mosque, which had been inactive for about 95 years, was inaugurated.

In 2013, he co-founded the ASTEM Foundation. The mission-led foundation aims to improve public life by supporting initiatives in the areas of social innovation, regional communities, education, medicine, sports, culture, human rights, and religious freedom as part of the organization's vision and mission, which anticipate new challenges in the future. The Foundation is one of the donors of the Ukrainian Emerging Leaders program at Stanford University, which is designed to train Ukrainian politicians, lawyers, social entrepreneurs, businessmen, and community leaders. The purpose of the program: the development of leadership skills and strengthening the scientific base of fellows to participate in solving development problems in Ukraine.

In 2012 he became a co-founder and board member of the Crimean International Business Association. Among the goals of the organization were assistance in developing and implementing a strategy for the development of the Crimean economy, supporting small and medium-sized businesses, introducing promising innovative technologies, developing international cooperation, and improving the investment climate of Crimea.

From 2011 to 2013 he was a co-founder and president of the Crimean Development Fund, which aimed to promote the social activity of Crimean residents, forming a responsible community and overcoming the consequences of one of the disasters of the 20th century - genocide deportation in 1944.

In 2007 he was one of the founders of the Crimean Tatars Fellowship, which focuses on the development of regional representations of Crimean Tatars in Ukraine, as well as strengthening social, cultural, and informational dialogue within the Crimean Tatar community in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities.

In 2007, he also co-founded the international organization Bizim Qırım, which aimed to preserve national interests and promote the restoration of political, socio-economic, cultural, linguistic, and religious rights of the Crimean Tatar people.

Rustem Umerov began his career at Lifecell company, holding various management positions from 2004 to 2010.

Rustem Umerov actively supports his Crimean Tatar compatriots in Ukraine and abroad. Since 1999 he has been participating in various student, public and charitable events, both individually and jointly with public organizations.

Rustem Umerov (Ukrainian: Рустем Енверович Умеров; Crimean Tatar: Rustem Enver oğlu Umerov / Рустем Энвер огълу Умеров, born April 19, 1982 in Samarkand, Uzbek SSR) is a Ukrainian politician, businessman, investor, and philanthropist of Crimean Tatar origin. He is a Member of the 9th Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's national parliament. Before he was elected a member of parliament, he was the CEO of ASTEM Company, specializing in communications, IT and infrastructure investments.

Rustem Umerov was born in 1982 in the Samarkand of the Uzbek SSR, in an ethnic Crimean Tatar and Muslim family from Alushta (Crimean Oblast, Ukrainian SSR). His father, Enver Umerov, was an engineering technologist. His mother, Meryem Umerova, was a chemical engineer. His older brother is Aslan Omer Qirimli.

On May 18, 1944, the Umerov family had been forcibly deported by the Soviet government, along with all the Crimean Tatar people, from their indigenous homeland of Crimea to Siberia and the Uzbek SSR. In 2015, the Verkhovna Rada recognized this deportation as a genocide of the Crimean Tatar people. After 50 years of deportation in exile and the beginning of repatriation of Crimean Tatars in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Umerov family was able to return to their historical homeland in Crimea, which since 1991 has been part of independent Ukraine.