Ukraine’s leadership appears to be in crisis, with allegations of corruption, the resignations of close associates of Volodymyr Zelensky, and the president himself is undergoing a massive reshuffle in his staff. Resignations were submitted by persons in critical positions, such as the deputy head of the presidential administration and the deputy minister of defense.

On Tuesday morning, deputy director of Zelenskiy’s office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said on Tuesday that he had asked the president on Monday to relieve him of his post.

“I thank the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky for the trust and the opportunity to do good deeds every day and every minute,” Tymoshenko wrote on Telegram.

He also thanked “every head of the regional military command. We managed to create the strongest team in the country. You are really great. You are true warriors of light!”

Recall that a week earlier, another close adviser to the Ukrainian leader, Aleksey Arestovich, submitted his resignation.

The reason for Mr. Arestovich’s resignation was his offhand comment about a deadly Russian strike on a nine-story residential building in Dnipro. He stated that the missile that eventually hit the building was shot down by the Ukrainian air defense system.

At the same time, Mr. Zelensky himself announced in his Monday evening message that he was about to embark on massive changes in both the face and aspects of running his war-torn country.

While he did not name the specific people who will leave or the positions that will be changed, he stressed that changes are taking place at both the upper and lower levels of the Ukrainian government in the wake of allegations of corruption in Kyiv.

“There are already decisions on personnel reshuffles – who today, who tomorrow – in relation to officials of various levels, in ministries and other structures of the central government, as well as in regions and law enforcement agencies,” Zelensky said in his taped message. , on Monday night.

The President of Ukraine has said that his plans include stricter control of travel abroad with official missions, as only travel with state missions will be allowed.

Categories of corruption phenomena

Several Ukrainian media reported that cabinet ministers and other high-ranking officials could be fired immediately.

On Sunday, anti-corruption police said they had arrested Deputy Infrastructure Minister Vasily Lozinsky on charges of taking a $400,000 bribe to import generators last September. The Minister denies this accusation.

A newspaper investigation accused the Department of Defense of overpaying suppliers for soldiers’ meals. The supplier said that he made a technical error and the money was not exchanged. Defense Minister Aleksei Reznikov denied accusations of corruption in military procurement, but his deputy resigned on Tuesday.

While the ministry insists there is no corruption problem, it adds in a statement that Deputy Defense Minister Vyacheslav Shapovalov has resigned to maintain the ministry’s prestige and credibility. He even called his departure “a worthy act.”

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine announced the dismissal of the Deputy Prosecutor General of the country. Alexei Simonenko is accused of going on vacation to Spain at the end of 2022.

David Arakhamia, head of Zelensky’s Servant of the People party, said officials should “focus on the war, help the victims, cut red tape and stop controversial actions.”

“Some will definitely go to jail this spring. If the humane approach does not work, we will do it under martial law,” he said.

It is also recalled that last week the leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was removed as a result of an accident with a helicopter crash in northern Ukraine.

Source: Reuters, France 24, Ukrinform