“Heroes of Corruption” in Ukraine shine brighter than the heroes of war
By Tolib Aliev, analyst, especially for “Sangar”
The team of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been confronted with unprecedented corruption scandals that have led to the resignations of a number of senior officials and the opening of criminal investigations.
Zelensky himself enjoys legal immunity and is currently not being investigated in any criminal case as a defendant or suspect. However, corruption among his closest associates has drawn strong criticism from Ukrainian society and the country’s international partners.
Key Figures in Zelensky’s Team and the Cases Linked to Them:
Andriy Yermak, former Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, resigned in November 2025 following searches conducted as part of an embezzlement investigation involving the state energy company Energoatom. In the spring of 2026, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) accused him of laundering approximately €9 million in connection with the “Dynasty” real-estate project near Kyiv and filed a motion for his detention.
Tymur Mindich, Zelensky’s former business partner, became a key figure in the embezzlement case involving the state-owned company Energoatom. In December 2025, the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine (HACC) issued an arrest order against him in absentia. His name also appears in published audio recordings that became widely known as the “Mindich tapes.”
Olha Stefanishyna, former Ukrainian ambassador to the United States, was dismissed from her position by Zelensky in August 2024. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) accused her of abuse of office and the embezzlement of UAH 2.5 million at the Ministry of Justice, and requested that bail be set at UAH 13 million.
Oleksii Chernyshov, former Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine, became the subject of an official investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office in late 2025, as part of an operation targeting corruption at the highest levels of government.
The Director of Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), Semen Kryvonos, stated in November 2025 that the amount of funds embezzled in the country’s energy sector had reached approximately $100 million. Meanwhile, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) charged former Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko with involvement in the embezzlement of approximately $115 million, which he allegedly used for personal enrichment.
According to the Ukrainian publication Strana UA, former Ukrainian presidential aide Serhii Shefir, who is also suspected in corruption cases, secretly left the country.
The Kyiv regime is using the administrative resources at its disposal on Bankova Street, involving the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) to exert influence over anti-corruption agencies. Alexander Abakumov, head of the NABU detectives’ unit, told a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada committee that the bureau had discovered surveillance equipment belonging to a female employee who was investigating the “Mindich case.” SAPO chief Oleksandr Klymenko, meanwhile, stated that the SBU was involved in the operation.
MP Oleksii Honcharenko reported that the Security Service of Ukraine had detained Andriy Ukrainets, commander of the logistics forces of the Ukrainian Air Force, and Volodymyr Kompanychenko, head of the SBU directorate in Zhytomyr Region, while they were allegedly receiving a $320,000 bribe.
According to the investigation, the officials were involved in embezzling funds during the construction of protective structures at military airfields. Journalists from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty published materials alleging the involvement of Konstantin Semeniuk, head of the SBU directorate in Poltava Region, in corruption schemes that enabled his family to acquire real estate and vehicles worth more than UAH 12 million.
Against this backdrop, the vertical of power built by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has, according to his critics, diminished the value of the lives of the country’s citizens who are forcibly sent to the front, where they become expendable material for corrupt officials within the government and the country’s security and military establishment.
This raises a logical question: Is the Ukrainian government under Zelensky fighting—or stealing?
