# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/leonid-kuchma
# Generated: 2026-09-07T22:45:59.301Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/leonid-kuchma"
name: "Leonid Kuchma"
slug: "leonid-kuchma"
description: "Ukraine's only two-term president presided over economic recovery and tighter ties with Russia while his administration censored media, arrested journalists, and was engulfed by the Cassette Scandal after the death of Georgiy Gongadze—a trajectory that ended with him mediating the Orange Revolution against his own chosen successor."
tagline: "The second president of Ukraine"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Leonid_Kuchma.jpg"
gender: "male"
category:
  name: "Politicians"
  slug: "politicians"
profileType:
  name: "Politician"
  slug: "politician"
birthDate: "1938-08-09"
livingStatus: "LIVING"
scores:
  popularity:           67.45
  momentum:             15
  historical:           25.488132
  currentAttention:     8
  sourceConfidence:     65
  profileCompleteness:  65
  trendDirection:       "STABLE"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
tags:
  - name: "Politicians"
    slug: "politicians"
  - name: "Politician"
    slug: "politician"
  - name: "Politics"
    slug: "politics"
  - name: "20th Century"
    slug: "20th-century"
platforms:
  - platform:  "IMDB"
    url:       "https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2524995/"
    handle:    "nm2524995"
sources:
  - url: "https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%AC%E3%82%AA%E3%83%8B%E3%83%BC%E3%83%89%E3%83%BB%E3%82%AF%E3%83%81%E3%83%9E"
    title: "レオニード・クチマ"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Koetsjma"
    title: "Leonid Koetsjma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%81eonid_Kuczma"
    title: "Łeonid Kuczma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BC%D0%B0%2C_%D0%9B%D0%B5%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B4_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87"
    title: "Кучма, Леонид Данилович"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%88%97%E6%98%82%E5%B0%BC%E5%BE%B7%C2%B7%E5%BA%93%E5%A5%87%E9%A9%AC"
    title: "列昂尼德·库奇马"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Koutchma"
    title: "Leonid Koutchma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Ku%C4%8Dma"
    title: "Leonid Kučma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kutchma"
    title: "Leonid Kutchma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kuchma"
    title: "Wikipedia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q629702"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"
  - url: "https://pantheon.world/profile/person/Leonid%20Kuchma"
    title: "Pantheon 2.0"
    type:  "DATABASE"
  - url: "https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kutxma"
    title: "Leonid Kutxma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ce.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BC%D0%B0%2C_%D0%9B%D0%B5%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B4_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87"
    title: "Кучма, Леонид Данилович"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://crh.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Ku%C3%A7ma"
    title: "Leonid Kuçma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Ku%C4%8Dma"
    title: "Leonid Kučma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cy.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kuchma"
    title: "Leonid Kuchma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kutjma"
    title: "Leonid Kutjma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kutschma"
    title: "Leonid Kutschma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://el.wikipedia.org/wiki/%CE%9B%CE%B5%CE%BF%CE%BD%CE%AF%CE%BD%CF%84_%CE%9A%CE%BF%CF%8D%CF%84%CF%83%CE%BC%CE%B1"
    title: "Λεονίντ Κούτσμα"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eo.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Ku%C4%89ma"
    title: "Leonid Kuĉma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kuchma"
    title: "Leonid Kuchma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://et.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kut%C5%A1ma"
    title: "Leonid Kutšma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://eu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kutxma"
    title: "Leonid Kutxma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonid_Kut%C5%A1ma"
    title: "Leonid Kutšma"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leonid_Kuchma"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://it.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leonid_Ku%C4%8Dma"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://pt.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leonid_Kuchma"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://ru.wikiquote.org/wiki/%D0%9B%D0%B5%D0%BE%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%B4_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87_%D0%9A%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BC%D0%B0"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://uk.wikiquote.org/wiki/%D0%9A%D1%83%D1%87%D0%BC%D0%B0_%D0%9B%D0%B5%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%96%D0%B4_%D0%94%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D9%84%D8%A6%D9%88%D9%86%DB%8C%D8%AF_%DA%A9%D9%88%DA%86%D9%85%D8%A7"
    title: "لئونید کوچما"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Born 9 August 1938, Kuchma rose through the Soviet machine-building industry before entering politics in 1990 as a member of the Verkhovna Rada. He served as Prime Minister from October 1992 to September 1993, then defeated incumbent Leonid Kravchuk in the 1994 presidential election. Corruption accelerated under his watch, and in 1999 his administration launched a campaign of media censorship that led to journalist arrests and the death of Georgiy Gongadze, triggering the Cassette Scandal and mass protests. The economy declined until 1999, then recorded growth from 2000 onward, bringing relative prosperity to some urban residents while Ukrainian-Russian relations improved. He won re-election in 1999 but declined a third term in 2004, backing Viktor Yanukovych—then took a neutral stance as the Orange Revolution unfolded, mediating between the rival camps. Between 2014 and 2020, he served as Ukraine's special representative at quasi peace talks over the war in Donbas.