Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has announced the sudden resignation of his powerful Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak amid an ongoing corruption investigation at his home. The announcement came after investigators from Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies conducted searches at Yermak's apartment earlier in the day.
Yermak, who was leading the latest round of peace negotiations with the US, had been a key figure in Zelenskyy's administration since 2020. However, his role as gatekeeper to the president came under scrutiny after allegations emerged of a high-level corruption scheme involving Energoatom, Ukraine's state-owned nuclear power generator.
According to investigators from Nabu, the national anti-corruption bureau, and Sapo, the specialised anti-corruption prosecutor's office, those close to Zelenskyy allegedly received kickbacks of 10%-15% from commercial partners. The investigation claims that Timur Mindich, an old friend and business partner of the Ukrainian president, was involved in setting up the scheme.
Zelenskyy himself has denounced the allegations, stating that he is "grateful to Andriy for always representing Ukraine's position exactly as it should be." However, his decision not to fire Yermak amid these findings sparked widespread outrage, particularly at a time when Ukrainians are facing daily electricity blackouts due to Russian bombing of energy infrastructure.
The investigation has been ongoing since November and has uncovered over 1,000 hours of secretly recorded conversations. The European Commission has expressed respect for the investigations, saying that Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies are functioning effectively.
Yermak had confirmed earlier in the day that searches were continuing at his home, stating that investigators had "full access" to the apartment and that he was cooperating fully with law enforcement officers.
Yermak, who was leading the latest round of peace negotiations with the US, had been a key figure in Zelenskyy's administration since 2020. However, his role as gatekeeper to the president came under scrutiny after allegations emerged of a high-level corruption scheme involving Energoatom, Ukraine's state-owned nuclear power generator.
According to investigators from Nabu, the national anti-corruption bureau, and Sapo, the specialised anti-corruption prosecutor's office, those close to Zelenskyy allegedly received kickbacks of 10%-15% from commercial partners. The investigation claims that Timur Mindich, an old friend and business partner of the Ukrainian president, was involved in setting up the scheme.
Zelenskyy himself has denounced the allegations, stating that he is "grateful to Andriy for always representing Ukraine's position exactly as it should be." However, his decision not to fire Yermak amid these findings sparked widespread outrage, particularly at a time when Ukrainians are facing daily electricity blackouts due to Russian bombing of energy infrastructure.
The investigation has been ongoing since November and has uncovered over 1,000 hours of secretly recorded conversations. The European Commission has expressed respect for the investigations, saying that Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies are functioning effectively.
Yermak had confirmed earlier in the day that searches were continuing at his home, stating that investigators had "full access" to the apartment and that he was cooperating fully with law enforcement officers.
i mean i know they're not as good as getting them from a real italian place but they're pretty close lol also did u hear that netflix is dropping a new season of the office 
anyway back to ukraine... i feel bad for zelenskyy though, being stuck between a rock and a hard place what's ur take on corruption scandals? should ppl be held accountable or just let it slide 
sooner or later ukraine's got 2 deal w/ reality n maybe its time 4 new blood in zelenskyy's crew 
meanwhile, us has 2 keep an eye on things over there 
n hope they get their act together
just when you think things can't get any worse for Ukraine... their president's chief of staff is outta there after getting caught up in a corruption scandal 
10-15% kickbacks from commercial partners? sounds like a sweet deal, but I guess not so much when the law catches up 
and it turns out he was setting up this scheme with some "old friend" and business partner of the president 
Mindich's name is all over this too... what a mess 
just when you think ukraine is making progress with peace talks, this new info about andriy yermak's resignation comes out... i'm not surprised though, corruption has been a huge issue in ukraine since forever 
. 10-15% kickbacks to whoever is close to zelenskyy is crazy! 
how can u trust someone who is supposed to represent the country when they're allegedly getting paid off by friends of the president? 
this just shows ukraine needs more accountability and transparency. 
the fact that investigators had access to yermak's apartment and secretly recorded conversations is super suspicious tho 
. And now Yermak just quits? 
Like, what's next? He's going to sue Zelenskyy for everything he's got 
. I mean, I get it, corruption's a big deal and all, but shouldn't Zelenskyy be holding his own people accountable? 
. I'm not saying Yermak did anything wrong (yet 
), but you've got to wonder who else might be involved and what other skeletons are hiding in the closet 
. Stay tuned, folks 
Can't believe Andriy Yermak is getting off scot-free 
. I mean, come on, 10-15% kickbacks? That's not "representing Ukraine's position" that's more like " lining own pockets" 
. And what really gets me is that the whole investigation has been going on since November and still no big reaction from Zelenskyy 
.
. It's kinda sad that a guy like Timur Mindich, who's connected to the president, gets away with allegedly setting up this scheme... doesn't feel right 
. I mean, Andriy Yermak was basically Zelenskyy's right-hand man since 2020, but now he's just suddenly out of a job? It's like, what's going on here? 
The corruption investigation might be the obvious reason, but I'm not sure it's that simple 
. On one hand, it's great that Ukraine has anti-corruption agencies doing their thing 
. But on the other hand, Yermak was a key player in peace negotiations with the US and now he's out? It's like, who's really behind this? 
And what about Timur Mindich? That guy sounds super shady 
.
I feel so bad for President Zelenskyy, he's already dealing with so much pressure from Russia, and now this? It's like, can't anyone just be honest around him? 
Andriy Yermak was such a key figure in his admin since 2020, it's crazy how quickly things can turn sour. The fact that investigators found out about a huge corruption scheme involving Energoatom is mind-blowing 
, maybe this will be a turning point for them to really tackle corruption once and for all 
️ I mean, those kickbacks could be huge and it's not cool that people close to him were getting paid off 
.
. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that Zelenskyy didn't take action sooner 
...and now this? #UkraineCorruption #ZelenskyyResignation #YermakGate