Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Ukraine to the Republic of Estonia
Maksym Kononenko was appointed Ambassador of Ukraine to the Republic of Estonia in March 2021. Throughout his career, he has held several bilateral and multilateral positions in areas such as international law, politics, human rights, European and Euro-Atlantic integration, litigation and dispute resolution, human resources management, consular affairs.
From 2021 to 2023, Maksym Kononenko was Ambassador of Ukraine to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Previously, he has held positions as Minister-Counsellor of the Embassy of Ukraine to the French Republic in charge of political affairs (2020-2021); Deputy Director – Head of the Analysis and Forecasting Division of the Department of EU and NATO, MFA of Ukraine responsable for the political cooperation with the European Union and the implementation of the Association Agreement (2018-2020); Deputy Director – Head of the State Border Division of the Department of International Law, MFA of Ukraine in charge of the delimitation, demarcation, and verification of the State border of Ukraine (2016-2018); Legal Advisor at the Permanent Representation of Ukraine to the Council of Europe (2012-2016). From February to June 2016, he served as Acting Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the Council of Europe. Maksym Kononenko was tasked with representing Ukraine Member of the Committee of Legal Advisers on Public International Law (CAHDI) (2017-2018) and made substantial contribution to the activities of this intergovernmental body of the Council of Europe.
Throughout his career, Maksym Kononenko has been actively involved in prominent legal cases. His contributions as a Legal Advisor for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine in the case «Delimitation of Maritime Spaces in the Black Sea» (Romania v. Ukraine) spanned from 2004 to 2009. He played a vital role in drafting Ukrainian legal arguments, gathering evidence, and translating evidence into English and French. Additionally, he participated in the oral proceedings as a member of the Ukrainian legal team.
In July 2020, Maksym Kononenko represented the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine during oral proceedings at the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, where the constitutionality of the Law of Ukraine «On Ensuring the Functioning of the Ukrainian Language as a State Language» was under consideration.
Maksym Kononenko’s educational background includes a Master’s degree in International Law from the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of International Relations. He also obtained a University diploma in French and EU Business Law from the Université Panthéon-Assas (Paris-II, Sorbonne).
His contributions to academia include authoring several articles on topics such as maritime delimitation, the occupation of the Crimean Peninsula, Ukraine’s non-recognition policy towards the attempted annexation, the Budapest Memorandum, and security guarantees for Ukraine. In addition to his native Ukrainian, Maksym Kononenko is fluent in French, English, and Russian.
He holds the diplomatic rank of Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Envoy, Second Class (Decree of the President of Ukraine dated December 22, 2023, No. 843/2023).
Outside of his professional endeavors, he is happily married to Tetiana Doroshenko, and they have a son named Mykola, born in 2005.
Additional qualifications:
2012 – Professor Emeritus of the National University of State Tax Service of Ukraine
2016-2020 – Visiting lecturer for conflict prevention and dispute resolution, international organizations and litigation at the Institute of International Relations, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
2018-2020 – Visiting lecturer for conflict prevention and dispute resolution, international organizations and litigation at the Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine
2022 – Chair of the Budget Committee, Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)
Certification training:
Training Program «Diplomacy: Tools of the trade», Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine), February 2020.
Training Course «International Negotiations», provided by Clingendael Academy, Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine (Kyiv, Ukraine), June 2019.
Course on International Law and its Application, Centre for International Law (CIL), National University of Singapore, (Singapore), August 2018.
Executive Programme on Legal Dimensions of Contemporary and Future Use of Force, Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) (Geneva, Switzerland), October 2017.
Workshop «Maritime Boundary Delimitation», International Boundaries Research Unit, Durham University (Durham, United Kingdom), April 2005.
Training Programme «Libertés publiques et sécurité intérieure publiques», École nationale d’administration (ENA), (Paris, France), November-December 2003.
Programme «Leaders of the 21 Century», The George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany), February-April 2003.
7th European International Session, Institut des Hautes Études de Défense Nationale (L'IHEDN), (Paris, France), November 2002.