Full Breakdown
Turmoil in Ukraine’s Anti-Corruption Fight: Prosecutor General Resigns and Targets Agency Heads
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event – Resignation and Accusations
In mid-September, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko resigned after a National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) investigation linked his office to a criminal group allegedly laundering millions of hryvnias through scam call centers. In an address released shortly after his resignation, Kravchenko said he had approved criminal-law charges against Semen Kryvonos, director of NABU, and against an unnamed associate of Oleksandr Klymenko, head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). He also claimed to have signed off on accusations against a person close to Klymenko.
Background & Context – Ongoing Power Struggle
The accusations come amid repeated attempts by President Volodymyr Zelensky to place the semi-independent anti-corruption agencies under the prosecutor-general’s office. A failed effort last year triggered protests and pressure from Western donors, who warned of aid cuts if the agencies lost independence. Kravchenko was widely seen as a staunch supporter of Zelensky before the scandal.
Official Statements & Responses
- Kravchenko asserted that Kryvonos falsified official documents to obtain “especially large illicit benefit” and orchestrated a “sham adoption” to create artificial grounds for avoiding liability. He also alleged that senior official Serhii Kropyva facilitated repairs at Kravchenko’s residence in Kozyn.
- NABU and SAPO described Kravchenko’s actions as a continuation of an attack on agency independence, emphasizing that Kryvonos has not yet been formally charged and that the statements remain “public rather than procedural.”
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Russian-state outlet RT reported that Zelensky and Kravchenko may have struck a deal allowing the prosecutor general to leave the country in exchange for legal tools to target NABU and SAPO, suggesting a “political pressure” motive. The Kyiv Independent cited Zelensky’s explicit call for Kravchenko’s dismissal and presented no evidence of such an arrangement. Neither source provided independent verification, leaving the nature of the relationship unresolved.
Data & Statistics – Charges Overview
- Kryvonos: suspected of falsifying documents for personal gain and fabricating a sham adoption to evade liability.
- Unidentified associate of Klymenko: alleged involvement in bribery of judges serving on Ukraine’s High Anti-Corruption Court (according to RT).
- Serhii Kropyva: described as a confidant of Kravchenko and implicated in arranging home repairs for the prosecutor general.
Verbatim Quotes
- “I suspect (Kryvonos) of falsifying official documents in order to obtain especially large illicit benefit, as well as of a sham adoption intended to create artificial grounds for avoiding liability in cour,” — Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko
- “This prosecutor general has only one path: dismissal from office. That is exactly what I told him,” — Volodymyr Zelensky
What’s Next – Parliamentary Decision
Lawmakers are scheduled to vote on Kravchenko’s dismissal the following day after Zelensky’s motion, determining whether the resignation will be formally confirmed and how the anti-corruption agencies will proceed amid the accusations.