[1] He was one of the leading specialists in history of the Kievan Rus (Old Rus) and one of leading researchers of the NASU Institute of Archaeology of Ukraine.

Tolochko was a doctor of historical sciences (1981), professor (1982), full member of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (1990), foreign member of the Russian Academy of Sciences (2011, on 8 March 2022 he announced the withdrawal of his membership[2]) and member of the World Russian People's Council.

[3] In Ukraine, Tolochko was heavily criticized for his pro-Russian views and for his disapproval of the country's relations with the EU and NATO.

[4][5][6] In 2016, he was forced to quit his position as the director of the Institute of Archaeology of the NASU.

[7] According to the Russian historian Ruslan Gagkuyev, Petro Tolochko was placed under house arrest in April 2023.