"Mindichgate" undermines Ukraine’s credibility with West amid Russian attacks - Times

Ukraine continues to suffer from Russian attacks on its energy infrastructure, but internal corruption is causing no less damage.

This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to The Times.

The publication writes: "These revelations are seriously damaging to the president, who is already under pressure, not only because of his ties to the individuals involved, but also because in July he attempted to subjugate the NABU to himself and limit its independent investigative powers." According to the editorial board, these events fuel Western doubts about the effectiveness of aid.

The Times reminds us that corruption remains a long-standing systemic problem in Ukraine, which has not disappeared even after the start of full-scale war. "However, Russian aggression has not destroyed corruption with a surge of patriotism: on the contrary, there are now more opportunities to profit from shortages and difficulties, as well as cases of bribes for exempting young men from mobilization," the article emphasizes.

The article also notes that both the EU and NATO demand real efforts to combat corruption in order to further rapprochement with Ukraine.

The Ukrainian journalist mentioned in the text called the exposure "a personal disgrace" for Zelenskyy, stressing that if the guilty parties are not put behind bars, "Ukrainians will stop fighting." In the West, meanwhile, these events could be used as an argument against further funding for Ukraine.

The publication concludes: "The lights must remain on—both in Ukrainian homes and in the offices of the NABU, which audits those responsible for the vital energy sector."

Mindichgate

Earlier, Censor.NET reported that NABU was conducting searches at Mindich's residence, who left Ukraine a few hours before the searches.
As reported, on Tuesday, 4 November, searches were conducted in one of the branches of the separate divisions of NAEK Energoatom in connection with a corruption case.
NABU is also conducting searches at the home of former Energy Minister Halushchenko and at Energoatom.
NABU and SAPO announced a large-scale operation to expose corruption in the energy sector.
The current Minister of Energy, Svitlana Hrynychuk, appears in NABU recordings as part of the investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
Subsequently, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau exposed an office in central Kyiv belonging to the family of former MP and current Russian Senator Andriy Derkach. There, they kept "black accounts," recorded money, and organised money laundering.
On 11 November, NABU released recordings featuring Minister Halushchenko and Mindich.
Chernyshov has been notified of suspicion of illegal enrichment as part of Operation Midas.
One of the suspects, Dmytro Basov, was remanded in custody with bail set at 40 million hryvnia.
Galushchenko's former adviser Myroniuk was remanded in custody with bail set at UAH 126 million.
The Cabinet of Ministers submitted proposals to the National Security and Defence Council to impose personal sanctions on Tymur Mindich and Oleksandr Tsukerman following a NABU investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
Earlier, Ihor Myronyuk and the executive director of security at Energoatom, Dmytro Basov, who appeared in NABU's videos under the nickname Tenor, were remanded in custody for 60 days.
Another suspect, Lesya Ustymenko, was also remanded in custody for 60 days.
The High Anti-Corruption Court chose a preventive measure for Ihor Fursenko (known as Ryoshik in NABU recordings), a suspect in a case of corruption in the energy sector.
On 13 November, the High Anti-Corruption Court arrested Lyudmila Zorin, with bail set at 12 million hryvnia.
Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against Mindich and Zuckerman.