Image source, Reuters
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- author, Paul Kirby
- Author title, Editor, BBC News Europe
- author, Yaroslav Lukiev
- Author title, BBC News
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on Friday the resignation of his office director, Andriy Yermak, after anti-corruption authorities raided his home.
Yermak, a prominent figure with great political influence and Zelensky’s closest advisor during the war with Russia, is under increasing pressure over a corruption scandal in the country, although he has not been accused of any wrongdoing.
Zelensky recently put him in charge of crucial negotiations, as US President Donald Trump led a new effort to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.
In a strongly worded address to the nation in front of his presidential office, Zelensky called for unity.
“We risk losing everything: ourselves, Ukraine and our future,” he warned.
The corruption scandal has rocked Ukraine for weeks, weakening Zelensky’s position and jeopardizing the country’s negotiating position with the United States at a particularly sensitive time.
Ukraine, with the support of its European allies, has sought to amend the terms of the US-led draft peace plan, which was initially seen as too favorable to Russia.
Image source, Getty Images
What happened
In the early hours of Friday, Ukraine’s two anti-corruption agencies raided Yermak’s apartment in the government headquarters in Kiev, and the chief of staff announced on social media: “For my part, there is full cooperation.”
“I am grateful to Andriy that Ukraine’s position on the negotiating track has always been presented correctly: it has always been a national position,” the Ukrainian president said during his video address from the capital.
Zelensky announced that he will begin consultations on Saturday on who will replace Yermak as his chief advisor.
He stated that “when all attention in war is focused on diplomacy and defence, internal strength is required.”
He added, “Russia wants Ukraine to make mistakes. There will be no mistakes on our part. Our work continues and our battle continues. We have no right to… withdraw or fight (among ourselves).”
Delicate moment
Yermak’s departure from power in Ukraine is a blow to Zelensky, as US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll is scheduled to arrive in Kiev later this week to discuss Trump’s draft peace plan.
American officials are scheduled to travel to Moscow next week, and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Friday his support for Hungary’s offer to organize a summit between him and Trump in Budapest.
Putin has continued to promote Russia’s extreme demands to end the war: He claimed Thursday that Russian forces have the initiative on the battlefield and that the fighting will end only when Ukrainian forces withdraw from the entire eastern Donbas region, including several strategically important cities under Ukrainian control.
Putin declared: “If they do not withdraw, we will achieve this by force of arms.”
Hours before the raid on his home, Yermak continued to explain his government’s position in the face of US pressure to make territorial concessions to Russia, which launched a large-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“As long as Zelensky is president, no one should count on us giving up territory,” Yermak told The Atlantic website. “He will not give up territory.”
Image source, AFP via Getty Images
Yermak (54 years old) admitted during his interview that he was under tremendous pressure to resign, adding that “the issue is highly controversial and an objective and independent investigation must be conducted without political influence.”
The Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office did not explain the reason for the search of his apartment.
Scandal
In recent weeks, a group of investigators has linked several prominent figures to an alleged $100 million embezzlement scandal in the energy sector.
They claimed to have uncovered a large-scale scheme to accept bribes and influence public companies, including the state nuclear power company Enerhoatom.
Russian officials involved in drafting Trump’s peace plan have drawn attention to the corruption allegations, alarming Kiev’s allies in the European Union.
Ukraine is a candidate to join the European Union, and a report issued earlier this month highlighted doubts about its “commitment to its anti-corruption agenda.”
Earlier this year, Zelensky tried to limit the powers of the two anti-corruption agencies, but was forced to back down almost immediately after widespread protests and objections from his Western allies.
Zelensky has already fired Energy Minister Svetlana Grynchuk and Justice Minister Herman Haloshenko, and several suspects have been arrested.
The growing corruption scandal has sparked public anger over accusations of diverting funds from critical infrastructure projects to protect Ukraine’s electricity supply.
With the advent of winter, Russian attacks have caused severe damage to Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, where many citizens have only a few hours of electricity per day.
Timur Mendic, one of the president’s former business partners, left the country after allegations of corruption.
Mendich was co-owner of the Kvartal 95 television studio, where Zelensky’s acting career took off before he was elected president.
In recent weeks, Andrej Yermak’s popularity has declined, and MPs from all parties, including his own, have called for his removal, initially on the grounds that he has too much power to be allowed as a non-elected official, and more recently because of the growing corruption scandal.
Recent opinion polls indicate that 70% of the public want his resignation.
Image source, Getty Images
Zelensky and his former chief of staff struck up a friendship about 14 years ago, when the future president was a senior media executive and Yermack worked for him as a lawyer. Yermak was appointed chief of staff a year after Zelensky was elected president in 2019.
On the first night of the Russian invasion, they appeared with other authorities broadcasting a defiant video message outside the presidential office on Bankova Street in Kiev, vowing to stay and fight.
“We are all here,” Zelensky told the Ukrainians.
“Our soldiers are here, the citizens are here, and we are all here. We are defending our independence and this will remain the case,” he said.
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