NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that Alliance allies have expressed serious concern regarding the corruption scandal in Ukraine, which gained attention following investigations by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau detectives. According to him, these events have attracted significant attention among partners; however, the subsequent actions of the Ukrainian leadership were viewed positively.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Actions of the Ukrainian Authorities and NATO’s Position
Rutte emphasized that the President of Ukraine responded promptly to the revelations by initiating decisive measures against the suspected ministers and other individuals. In the NATO Secretary General’s assessment, this demonstrates the seriousness of the Ukrainian authorities’ intentions to combat corruption at the highest level.
“At the same time, we have seen that the Ukrainian president is taking decisive actions against these ministers and other individuals. This is correct because it is extremely important and very serious,” the senior official emphasized.
Meanwhile, as noted by Mark Rutte, despite the scandal, NATO’s support for Ukraine remains stable. Alliance members understand the strategic importance of assisting Kyiv for the security of all of Europe and the Alliance as a whole.
NABU Investigations and New Suspects
On November 10, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau announced the dismantling of a criminal organization that systematically received illicit benefits from Energoatom contractors, amounting to 10-15% of the contract sums. Eight individuals have already been reported as suspects in the case, and the names of most of them have been made public. Among the suspects are co-founder of the Kvartal-95 studio Timur Mindich (“Karlson”), former advisor to the Minister of Energy Igor Mironyuk (“Rocket”), Executive Director for Security at Energoatom Dmitry Basov (“Tenor”), as well as Alexander Tsukerman (“Sugar Man”), Igor Fursenko (“Ryoshik”), Lesya Ustyimenko, and Lyudmila Zorina. Subsequently, suspicion of illegal enrichment was also announced against former Deputy Prime Minister for National Unity Alexey Chernyshov.
Alexander Tsukerman (“Sugar Man”) called the accusations from NABU and SAP “lies” and promised to return to Ukraine. Timur Mindich, according to law enforcement sources, left the territory of Ukraine on the night of November 10 and has not yet commented on the situation. The National Security and Defense Council has imposed sanctions on both individuals, and on November 22, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau announced a search for Timur Mindich and Alexander Tsukerman.