Lots to read below- check the links
TRT- An American/Turkish outlet
Ukrainian negotiators are set to visit the United States this weekend to discuss Washington’s plan to end the war in Ukraine, a senior official told AFP on Friday.
“The delegation is planning to meet with the American side at the end of this week,” the source said, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.
The delegation, which includes senior security official Rustem Umerov and First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya, is expected to meet with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and former White House adviser Jared Kushner, according to Bloomberg News.
Talks may take place in Florida, the source added.
Former Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, was initially scheduled to join the discussions but was dismissed on Friday, the official said.
Dismissed? Or Stepped Down?
Ukraine’s chief of staff stepped down just 24 hours before planned talks with Trump envoys, as leaked US peace plan offers Putin recognition of seized territories
How damaging could the Ukraine corruption scandal be for Zelensky?
Andriy Yermak, the cryptic aide who shadowed Volodymyr Zelensky through every phase of the war, resigned Friday after anti-corruption investigators searched his office and house. Yermak was the center of Zelensky’s wartime team – and the consequences of his resignation could be far reaching.
In an evening address, Zelensky thanked Yermak for representing Ukraine’s negotiating position in recent tense talks with the United States, “as it should be” and stressed that it had “always been patriotic,” while urging Ukrainians to ignore rumors around the resignation. He said he would begin consultations on a new chief of staff immediately. With more talks looming, he underlined that, in wartime, every institution must stay focused on defending the state. Meetings with the American side, he added, are expected in the coming days.
But Yermak rarely acted on his own; he was, in many ways, an extension of Zelensky. He handled the tough, unappealing tasks for the wartime president. He appeared to control the President’s decisions, because the President wanted it so. “Firing him feels like prosecuting his own actions,” an official said. “On a personal level, it feels like a betrayal because half of Yermak’s actions come from the President,” he added.
Since the beginning of Russia’s invasion, Yermak followed Zelensky from bunker meetings to front-line inspections and wielded enormous influence behind closed doors. Over the years, his controlling nature earned him disdain across the board. “He’s a control freak with a psychopathic nature, a maniac for power,” said a senior Ukrainian official. “Letting him go gives a second chance for the President to reset everything.
Midas” vs. Mindich: How Ukraine’s NABU executed the biggest anti-corruption operation in its history — and why the EU is getting involved
Kyiv is facing one of its biggest domestic political challenges since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Following the unprecedented “Midas” operation, Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies have accused senior officials in the energy sector of running a large-scale illegal enrichment and money-laundering scheme. The investigation may also implicate Tymur Mindich, a close associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky and co-owner of the comedy studio Kvartal 95. The case marks another attempt by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) to defend its independence and restore international support. Since Donald Trump took office, the United States has lost interest in Ukraine’s anti-corruption efforts, leaving the European Union to take the lead.
Content
- NABU takes aim at Zelensky’s associates
- “Midas” and the European Union
- Who is responsible for fighting corruption in Ukraine
- Fighting those who fight corruption
- How the EU stepped in to defend NABU
NABU takes aim at Zelensky’s associates
In November, NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced that they had uncovered a large-scale, high-level embezzlement scheme in the country’s energy sector. According to the investigators, it was orchestrated by business executive Timur Mindich, a longtime friend of Zelensky and co-owner of Kvartal 95, the production company Zelensky founded with two other associates in 2003.
Anti-corruption officials allege that Mindich’s trusted associates received illicit payments from counterparties engaged in transactions with Energoatom, Ukraine’s largest producer of electricity and the operator of all functioning nuclear power plants in the country. SAPO believes they siphoned off 10–15% of contract values and funneled the money through an underground financial center allegedly set up by financier Oleksandr Tsukerman, an associate of Mindich’s. Investigators say roughly $100 million passed through this channel. The scheme traces back to the 2000s and is linked to former lawmaker Andriy Derkach, who fled to Russia in 2022.
Mindich’s trusted associates siphoned off 10–15% of contract values and funneled the money through an underground financial center
The above is a lengthy detailed read.
You may recall Mindich fled to Israel??
One reply on ““Midas” vs. Mindich: Ukraine’s Corruption Scandal & Zelensky”
I have a weird feeling that this is about replacing Zelenskyy. NABU is funded by front organizations in the EU and the US. It’s just a feeling. ♀️