Ukraine’s top peace negotiator quits after raid by anti-graft police
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (left) said Mr Andriy Yermak had resigned, and that he would consider his replacement for Head of the Presidential Office on Nov 29.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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KYIV - President Volodymyr Zelensky’s powerful chief of staff, a close ally of the president who has headed Ukraine’s negotiation team at fraught US-backed peace talks, quit on Nov 28, hours after anti-corruption agents searched his home.
Mr Zelensky said Mr Andriy Yermak had resigned and that he would consider his replacement on Nov 29.
Mr Yermak’s departure comes as a major probe into high-level graft ensnared senior officials, fuelling widespread public anger.
“Russia very much wants Ukraine to make mistakes,” Mr Zelensky said in a video address.
“There will be no mistakes on our part. Our work continues.”
Mr Yermak, 54, has been a close friend of Mr Zelensky since the president’s days as a TV comedian, and helped guide Mr Zelensky’s successful 2019 presidential campaign as a political outsider.
He has not been named a suspect, but opposition lawmakers and some members of Mr Zelensky’s own party had called for his dismissal, as part of Ukraine’s worst wartime political crisis.
Earlier on Nov 28, Mr Yermak had confirmed his apartment was being searched and said he was fully cooperating.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office said the searches were “authorised” and linked to an unspecified investigation.
Earlier this month, the two anti-graft agencies unveiled a sweeping investigation
In a statement on Nov 28, the opposition European Solidarity party had called for Mr Yermak’s dismissal and his removal from the negotiating team, as well as for a new coalition government and talks with Mr Zelensky.
“The issue of peace and the fate of Ukrainians cannot depend on the personal vulnerabilities and tarnished reputation of politicians involved in a corruption scandal,” it said.
The US-backed peace push comes as Russian forces grind forward along several parts of the sprawling front line. Moscow says its troops are close to capturing the eastern city of Pokrovsk, which would be their biggest prize in nearly two years.
On Nov 27, President Vladimir Putin said a 28-point US peace plan leaked last week
Speaking to The Atlantic magazine this week, Mr Yermak had said “no one should count on us giving up territory”.
Showing progress in fighting corruption is a central element of Kyiv’s bid for European Union membership, which Ukrainian officials see as critical to breaking out of Russia’s orbit.
In a statement before Mr Yermak’s resignation was announced, a European Commission spokesperson said Brussels would “continue to follow the situation closely”.
The two anti-graft agencies have stepped up their campaign during Russia’s invasion, but have said they face pressure from vested interests.
Mr Zelensky briefly rolled back their independence in July, but reversed course after a public outcry
