The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said on Wednesday that she considers the corruption scandal in Ukraine extremely unfortunate. According to her, it is important that the Ukrainian authorities act really quickly in this matter and take it very seriously. TASR informs about it according to a Reuters report.
Kallas made this statement on the sidelines of the meeting of foreign ministers of the G7 group in the Canadian city of Niagara. A few hours earlier, two members of the government – Minister of Justice Herman Halushchenko and Minister of Energy Svitlana Hrynčuková – resigned due to the investigation of corruption in the energy sector in Ukraine. Both were invited by President Volodymyr Zelenskyi.
Corruption in Ukraine
Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities have found that members of the criminal organization built an extensive network to influence strategic state enterprises, including the state-run nuclear company Enerhoatom, and laundered approximately $100 million in bribes. Five people have been detained so far, seven people are considered suspects.
“They are acting very forcefully. There is no room for corruption, especially now. I mean, it is literally people’s money that should go to the front line,” said Kallasová. The European Commission stated at the beginning of November that Ukraine shows “remarkable determination” to join the European Union, but it is necessary to reverse recent negative trends regarding the fight against corruption and accelerate reforms in the field of the rule of law.
Individuals involved
The names of the suspects in the case in Ukraine have not been officially published, but journalists from Radio Free Europe (RFE/RL) have revealed that they include Zelensky’s confidant and business partner from the days of his acting and producing career, Timur Mindič, former adviser to the Minister of Energy Ihor Mironjuk, and Enerhoatom’s executive director for security Dmytro Basov – among others.
The main suspect in the case is Mindič, who allegedly influenced state decisions “in the energy and defense sector” in his favor and only a few hours before Monday’s raids, he left Ukraine.
Halushchenko, who led the Ministry of Energy until July of this year, is also involved in the investigation of the latest corruption scandal. Hrynčuková replaced him in the post as part of the reconstruction of the government. She claims that there were no violations of the law in the course of her professional activity.
