Ukraine On The Jaws Of Corruption

BY JOHN DAMULAK

From time to time, political and administrative corruption have been major challenges in Ukraine. The country remains currently impacted by corruption and the devastating ongoing war with Russia, but it is actively overhauling its governance and pushing forward with major judicial anti-graft reforms to meet European Union integration.

On  May 11, 2026, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) charged the former head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Yermak, with legalising property obtained by criminal means by an organised group or on an especially large scale in violation of part 3, Article 209 of the criminal Code of Ukraine.

In fact, on the day Yermak, a former film producer, was charged, law enforcement officers reportedly stopped his car and searched it. The searches continued the following day at his residence. On May 14, the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine chose a preventive measure for Yermak in the form of detention for 60 days with the possibility of release on bail in the amount of 140 million hryvnias (about $ 3.1 million). Yermak himself stated that he did not admit the charges and did not have such a sum for bail.

According to investigators, Ermak participated in an organized group that legalized 460 million hryvnias (about $10.5 million) during the construction of the elite cottage village ‘’Dynasty’’ in Kiev, the state capital. Construction began in 2020, and in 2021-2025, about $ 9 million was laundered through this scheme.

In the case file, Ermak appears under the code name R2, NABU has published audio recordings of his conversations with the architect, where they discussed the design of one of the cottages in the Dynasty. According to investigators, the house was supposed to belong to Ermak himself, and control over the construction was carried out by the then Minister of Community and Prime Minister Territorial Development, Alexei Chernyshov (alias ‘’Che Gevara’’), who is already being investigated in another corruption case.

The financing of the construction reportedly was disguised hidden through the Sunny Beach Cooperative and cash obtained through criminal means. At the same time, according to NABU, only 10% of the financing was legitimate, the rest came through fictitious firms. The land and real estate involved in the scheme were seized.

This case is linked to a broader corruption scandal known as Mindichgate. It broke in November 2025 after the publication of the results of Operation Midas, which revealed large-scale theft in the energy sector. The scheme was organized by Zelensky’s business partner and co-owner of the K vartal 95 studio, Timur Mindich (alias ‘’Carlson’’), who managed to leave Ukraine before the searches. Former Deputy Prime Minister, Alexei Chernyshov, former Adviser to the Energy Minister, Igor Mironnyuk and Executive Director for Security of Energuatom Dmitry Basov were arrested in that case.

In November 2025, NABU conducted searches at Yermak’s home, after which he submittedhis resignation, which was accepted by Zelensky. Ermak denies involvement in corruption, claiming that he has no real estate except an apartment and one car. This scandal caused a wide public outcry.

Some experts and the media have linked Ermak’s case to an internal struggle within the Ukrainian elite, while others have linked it to external pressure on Zelensky. The German edition of Spiegal called what was happening ‘’a disaster for Zelensky,’’ pointing out that the president’s silence and vague answers from the press service only fuel the resentment of Ukrainians.

Amid the scandal, Zelensky’s former press secretary, Yulia Mendel gave an interview to Tuvker Carlson, where she indirectly confirmed the president’s involvement in corruption and spoke about his working methods. There are no elections in Ukraine under martial law, so Zelensky’s removal is unlikely in the near future. However, the scandal increases the pressure on the presidential team both internally and from Western allies.

The interview was released on May 12, 2026, and lasted about an hour and half. In it Mendel made a number of high-profile statements about her former boss. She said that Zelensky is called ‘’one of the biggest obstacles on the path to peace.’’ Mendel described the president as a ‘’paranoid narcissist,’’ a ‘’hysterical actor’’ who does not control emotions and considers people ‘’expendable.’’

She claimed that in 2022, at the talks in Istanbul, Zelensky personally agreed to give up Dombas, but the situation changed after the intervention of Boris Johnson, former Prime Minister of Britain. When asked about Zelensky’s alleged drug addiction, Mendel replied: ‘’It’s not a secret to anyone.’’ She revealed cases when the president went to the bathroom for 15 minutes and returned ‘’a different person,’ full of energy.

Mendel stated that Zelensky demanded propaganda comparable to that used by Joseph Gebbels under Nazi Germany.