Iryna Vasylivna Friz – People’s Deputy of Ukraine of the IX convocation.
Place of Birth, Education
She was born on September 25, 1974 in the city of Yevpatoria.
In 2003, she completed her studies at the Faculty of Theory and History of Art of the National Academy of Fine Arts and Architecture.
In 2015, she entered the National Academy of Public Administration under the President of Ukraine, choosing a part-time form of study in the specialty “Management of Social Development”.
Career
In the period from 1988 to 1996, Friese worked in Yevpatoria, where she was a saleswoman and commodity maker in the Rapana cooperative. After that, she was a consultant, and later – the director of the antique store of the limited liability company (LLC) “Amida-2”.
In 1997 – 2001 she worked as an art critic at the Crimean Republican Foundation “Art in the Name of Christ”, where she dealt with issues related to contemporary Christian art. Then she began working as a public relations specialist at the Ukrainian Association of Exporters and Importers in Kyiv.
In the fall of 2002, she took the position of deputy director of the enterprise “Information Service” and remained in this position until April 2003. In the period from 2008 to 2013, she worked as a leading specialist in the staff of the Council of the National Bank of Ukraine. And during 2013 – 2014, she held the position of press secretary at Interstarch Ukraine LLC.
Political Activities
In the period from 2003 to 2005, Friese worked as an assistant to MP Petro Poroshenko. Subsequently, she continued to work as assistant secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine, when Poroshenko took this position. Until August 2006, she headed the press service of the department.
In addition, in 2012 – 2014, she was an assistant to Poroshenko in the Verkhovna Rada of the VII convocation. During the presidential elections of 2014, she headed the information department of the election headquarters of the people’s deputy.
After the elections to the Verkhovna Rada, which took place in the same year, she won the mandate of a parliamentarian. She got into the Rada on the list of the political force “Petro Poroshenko Bloc” under No. 30. In the Verkhovna Rada, she headed the subcommittee on the security of state information systems.
In the fall of 2018, she was appointed Minister of Ukraine for Veterans Affairs. According to the results of the early parliamentary elections of 2019, she again became a people’s deputy, this time entering the parliament at No. 13 on the list of the European Solidarity party.
Marital Status
She is married to Anatoliy Baronin, who as of 2023 worked in the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine. The couple has two sons: Mark and Eric.
