[citation needed] During World War I, Pavlenko served as the commander of many army units, including a Ukrainian brigade in Yekaterinoslav.

[3] In the spring of 1917, Omelianovych-Pavlenko became an active supporter of the Ukrainian independence movement, and initiated the creation of the Odessa battalion.

[3] After the union of the UHA and the army of the Ukrainian People's Republic, Pavlenko assumed command of the force.

After World War II, Pavlenko moved to France, and was chosen as the defense minister for the exiled Ukrainian People's Republic from 1945 to 1948.

[3] Due to decommunization policies, a street in Kyiv that was named after the Russian general Alexander Suvorov was renamed after Omelianovych-Pavlenko in 2016.