Vladimir Vasilyevich Saldo (Russian: Владимир Васильевич Сальдо, Ukrainian: Володимир Васильович Сальдо, romanized: Volodymyr Vasylovych Saldo; born 12 June 1956) is a Ukrainian and Russian politician serving as the acting governor of the collaborationist annexed Kherson Oblast in Russian-occupied Ukraine since 4 October 2022.

Prior to the invasion, Saldo served three terms as mayor of Kherson from 2002 to 2012,[3] and later as a People's Deputy in the Verkhovna Rada from 2012 to 2014, representing the pro-Russian Party of Regions.

A journalist with the Kyiv Independent, supported by members of the Ukrainian government, claimed that this constituted a war crime under Article 51 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

[13] Kherson journalist Konstantin Ryzhenko said that "Saldo has become a symbol of decline, economic ruin, corruption, forcible takeovers and gang violence", and that the former mayor's name was "connected to a few very suspicious deaths", none of which were "investigated properly".

Following his election, he was named the deputy chairman of the Verkhovna Rada's committee for construction, urban planning, housing and communal services and regional policy.

[8] In 2019, he founded the Volodymyr Saldo Bloc political party,[15][16] and in 2020 was re-elected to the City Council, while finishing second in the mayoral election again, losing to Ihor Kolykhaiev.

[20] Saldo received attention following his participation in a meeting of the Salvation Committee for Peace and Order, a Russian-established government organ in Kherson Oblast.

[25] On 6 May 2022, Saldo met with Denis Pushilin, head of the Donetsk People's Republic, and Andrey Turchak, secretary of the general council of United Russia.

[29][30] Saldo claimed victory on social media after the self-styled referendum ended in a supposed 87% vote for 'yes', saying that "It's already clear that the vast majority of people supported the issue of secession from Ukraine and joining Russia".

[30] On September 30, together with the other pro-Russian occupation heads Denis Pushilin, Leonid Pasechnik and Yevgeny Balitsky, Saldo attended in Moscow the ceremony in which Vladimir Putin formally announced the annexation of the Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia oblasts.

[37][38] In March 2023, Kherson Regional Council deputy Serhii Khlan, along with locals, reported that construction of the city had accelerated, with "guest workers" shipped in to work on it.

[48] According to Russian (RIA Novosti and Lenta.ru) and Ukrainian media reports, on September 12, Saldo died in intensive care after alleged poisoning.

[53] On 3 June 2022, he was sanctioned by the European Union due to his role in the Russian occupation of Kherson Oblast[4] and for providing support and promoting policies that undermine the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine.

[57] On 17 March, the Office of the Prosecutor General of Ukraine opened proceedings on treason related to the "creation of a pseudo-authority in the Kherson Oblast," with Saldo as a prime suspect in the case.

[58][59] The Volodymyr Saldo Bloc party's activities were suspended by the National Security and Defense Council on 20 March, for having ties to Russia.

[58] In early January 2023, the Ukrainian State Bureau of Investigation and the Kherson Oblast prosecutor's office raided Saldo's home.

[62][needs update] In 2016, Saldo was held in the Dominican Republic for three months after he was accused of kidnapping and torturing Denys Pashchenko,[63][64][4] a 33-year-old Ukrainian businessman who allegedly owed him and his partner $334,000.