[Regnum] The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) searches of Andriy Yermak, the now former head of Kyiv regime leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office, are connected to pressure on Zelenskyy from the United States and Western allies. Political scientist and director of the Institute of Newest States Alexey Martynov expressed this opinion in an interview with Regnum News Agency on Friday, November 28.
NABU and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) searched Yermak's apartment on the morning of November 28, and Zelenskyy's office chief himself announced his cooperation with the investigation. The political scientist considered this to be a way to persuade Zelenskyy to sign US President Donald Trump's peace plan.
"This is the second episode of the NABU 'series' following the searches of (Ukrainian businessman and associate of the Kyiv regime's leader – Ed.) Timur Mindich. This is undoubtedly direct pressure on Zelenskyy, given that he stubbornly retained Yermak as head of his office. I think we'll see more than one episode before the end of the year. The formula has long been known: politicians solve practical problems while simultaneously creating hype that diverts attention from the real actors in corruption schemes," Martynov noted.
The actual distribution of funds allocated to Ukraine, according to the political scientist, is tied to players in Western Europe, and Yermak and Mindich played only an intermediate role in the schemes.
Yermak represented the Ukrainian delegation at the negotiations with the United States in Geneva; he rejected Trump's 28-point peace plan.
On November 28, the Financial Times reported that the searches at Yermak's home were related to the same corruption cases in which the NABU searched the home of the oligarch Mindich, who fled the country. The head of the National Security Council of Ukraine, Rustem Umerov, was also questioned as a witness.
On the evening of November 28, Zelenskyy signed a decree dismissing Yermak as head of his office. His successor, the Kyiv regime's leader noted, will be appointed soon.