{"id":15194,"date":"2025-11-28T11:13:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-28T11:13:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infundpros.com\/?p=15194"},"modified":"2025-11-28T11:13:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-28T11:13:12","slug":"anti-corruption-authorities-raid-house-of-top-zelenskyy-aide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infundpros.com\/?p=15194","title":{"rendered":"Anti-corruption authorities raid house of top Zelenskyy aide"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>Unlock the Editor\u2019s Digest for free<\/p>\n<p class=\"article__content-sign-up-topic-description o3-type-body-base\"><span>Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><iframe class=\"article__content-sign-up-iframe close\" scrolling=\"no\" id=\"signUpIframe\" data-prev-url=\"\/register\/in-article-sign-up?ft-content-uuid=4f485041-9970-48c7-b908-97fe8c2debd0\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<p>Ukraine\u2019s top anti-corruption authorities searched the home of Andriy Yermak, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy\u2019s powerful chief of staff and lead negotiator in peace talks with Washington, as part of a widening investigation into the country\u2019s energy sector.<\/p>\n<p>About a dozen officers from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office entered Yermak\u2019s Kyiv home on Friday in the highly secure government quarter just before dawn, people familiar with the situation said.<\/p>\n<p>The development is likely to further weaken Zelenskyy at a pivotal moment for Ukraine, as he seeks to reassure western partners that he is rooting out entrenched corruption, while US President Donald Trump puts renewed pressure on Kyiv to accept a peace deal. <\/p>\n<p>One person involved said the raid was directly related to a graft probe, called \u201cOperation Midas\u201d, that has embroiled Zelenskyy\u2019s cabinet, toppled several senior government officials and led to a warrant for the arrest of the president\u2019s former business partner, who has fled the country.<\/p>\n<p>The case has heightened concern among Kyiv\u2019s western allies over persistent graft, as Ukraine continues to seek substantial financial and military support. <\/p>\n<figure id=\"ykkcygdo\" class=\"n-content-image n-content-image--full\" data-component=\"image-set\"><picture><source media=\"(min-width: 700px)\"  width=\"2289\" height=\"1526\"><source media=\"(max-width: 490px)\"  width=\"1527\" height=\"1527\"><\/picture><figcaption class=\"n-content-picture__caption o3-editorial-typography-caption\"><span>Anti-corruption bureau officers pass through a checkpoint at the government quarter in Kyiv<\/span><span> <!-- -->\u00a9 Ukrainska Pravda\/AFP\/Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Zelenskyy relies greatly on his chief of staff, who is the closest member of his inner circle. Yermak often behaves like he is president, according to numerous Ukrainian and western officials, drafting peace plans, directing back-channel diplomacy, handpicking cabinet officials and taking military decisions. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cTalk about Zelenskyy and you\u2019re talking about Yermak. Talk about Yermak and it\u2019s Zelenskyy. They\u2019ve become one,\u201d Oleh Rybachuk, chief of staff to former Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko, told the Financial Times in July.<\/p>\n<p>Three MPs from Zelenskyy\u2019s ruling party told the FT that the searches were likely to ignite fresh calls for Yermak\u2019s dismissal and could also have an impact on the intensifying peace talks. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPressure has accumulated in society and now it can explode any time,\u201d said a lawmaker from Zelenskyy\u2019s ruling party. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cCould this [put] pressure on the president to make him agree to something more quickly? Probably yes,\u201d said one MP, speaking on the condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n<p>The MPs said they supported Nabu and Sapo\u2019s investigation, with one saying that \u201cit shows international partners that law-enforcement bodies operate independently\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo one should be above suspicion because it\u2019s a matter of national security,\u201d said Oleksandr Merezhko, an MP from the president\u2019s party who chairs the foreign affairs committee in parliament.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"mpesnkhh\" class=\"n-content-image n-content-image--full\" data-component=\"image-set\"><picture><source media=\"(min-width: 700px)\"  width=\"2012\" height=\"1341\"><source media=\"(max-width: 490px)\"  width=\"1521\" height=\"1521\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/infundpros.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/https:\/\/d1e00ek4ebabms.cloudfront.net\/production\/fc04e6d0-ea9b-4d7a-b553-ef98e09d4f7b.jpg\" alt=\"Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Andriy Yermak walk outdoors in winter clothing with a snowy shrub visible nearby.\" data-image-type=\"image\" width=\"2012\" height=\"1341\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/picture><figcaption class=\"n-content-picture__caption o3-editorial-typography-caption\"><span>President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, and Andriy Yermak in Kyiv in January 2024<\/span><span> <!-- -->\u00a9 Gleb Garanich\/Reuters<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>An official from the anti-corruption bureau confirmed that the search of Yermak\u2019s home was under way and was \u201cbeing carried out within the framework of the investigation\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Yermak said in a statement on social media that the two anti-corruption agencies were \u201cindeed conducting procedural actions at my home\u201d, adding that there were \u201cno obstacles for investigators\u201d. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey were given full access to the apartment, and my lawyers are present on site, co-operating with law enforcement,\u201d he added. \u201cFor my part, there is full co-operation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The two anti-corruption agencies are examining claims of about $100mn in embezzled and laundered funds. At the centre of the case is Zelenskyy\u2019s former business partner Timur Mindich, who Nabu and Sapo have said is the ringleader and who has fled Ukraine. Mindich could not be reached for comment. <\/p>\n<p>Two former senior ministers are among several other people charged with their alleged involvement. The ministers have all publicly denied involvement.<\/p>\n<p>Rustem Umerov, another member of Zelenskyy\u2019s peace delegation and head of the National Security and Defence Council, was questioned by Nabu and Sapo investigators in the case after returning from talks with the US in Geneva. He has not been charged in the case. <\/p>\n<p>The scheme under investigation involved alleged kickbacks from contractors hired to build fortifications protecting energy assets from Russian missile and drone strikes, which have intensified in recent months and caused rolling blackouts across Ukraine. <\/p>\n<p>The Ukrainian president had sought to strip the anti-corruption agencies of their independence in July, but backtracked after public outrage and large protests.<\/p>\n<p>Zelenskyy told MPs in a closed-door meeting last week that he would not dismiss Yermak, despite calls for his resignation. Dozens of MPs supported removing Yermak and broader personnel changes in the president\u2019s office, according to four who were present, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. <\/p>\n<p>Yermak \u201cmade himself indispensable for the president by getting rid of all others who are close to the president\u201d, said one lawmaker from Zelenskyy\u2019s party.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYermak has also played the role of lightning rod. Everything could be conveniently blamed on him instead of the president,\u201d the MP added. \u201cAnd if he goes, then the criticism could fall on Zelenskyy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Two people familiar with the corruption probe said Zelenskyy had been warned early on that Yermak might be implicated. The president\u2019s office did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe key question [for Zelenskyy] is this: What do you put first, the country or your friends?\u201d one of them said. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Read the full article <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/4f485041-9970-48c7-b908-97fe8c2debd0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" rel=\"nofollow\">here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Unlock the Editor\u2019s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Ukraine\u2019s top&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15195,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-15194","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-business"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Anti-corruption authorities raid house of top Zelenskyy aide | inFundPros<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Unlock the Editor\u2019s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Ukraine\u2019s top anti-corruption\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/infundpros.com\/?p=15194\" 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