"Mindichgate" and notice of suspicion against Yermak could jeopardize Ukraine’s EU accession – Die Zeit
The corruption scandal involving Andriy Yermak, the former head of the President’s Office, is causing problems for Volodymyr Zelenskyy and could jeopardise Ukraine’s aspirations to join the EU.
This is reported in the article "Attack from within" by the German publication Die Zeit, according to Censor.NET.
Details
The authors described Operation Midas, calling it arguably the most striking case of corruption the country has seen in recent years.
Sources in Berlin stated that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz had personally discussed "Mindichgate" with Volodymyr Zelenskyy on several occasions.
"How this case is resolved will be a key test of whether Ukraine can meet European Union standards. Can the rule of law muster the strength to prevail over the kleptocratic networks that descended upon the country following the collapse of the Soviet Union? And can Moscow’s propaganda – that Ukraine is thoroughly corrupt – be refuted? Ukraine currently ranks 104th on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index. Russia ranks 157th," the publication notes.
Die Zeit reviewed investigation files, wiretap transcripts, financial records and videos related to the case.
Journalists visited Kyiv, where they spoke to investigators and lawyers representing the accused. They interviewed members of parliament and financial experts in London, Geneva and Frankfurt, and also consulted with security agencies, diplomats and a former German cabinet minister.
The investigation
NABU Director Semen Kryvonos, commenting on the investigation, begins with 2020. At that time, in his view, Mindich and Halushchenko launched a corruption scheme at "Energoatom".
Mindich’s diamonds
Journalists highlighted Timur Mindich’s diamond business.
"Mindich heads a network of dozens of companies spanning film production, property, wholesale trade and financial services. His synthetic diamonds are sold in luxury boutiques as far afield as New York. In 2010, Mindich, who holds both Israeli and Ukrainian citizenship, celebrated his wedding in Jerusalem with 500 guests.
Mindich has many influential friends, one of whom is President Zelenskyy. The two were partners in the Kvartal 95 film company, which created the satirical show that turned Zelenskyy into a star. In 2021, Mindich hosted the president’s birthday party at his luxury apartment in Kyiv," the article says.
Halushchenko
Halushchenko, meanwhile, rose through the ranks of the civil service, studied law and worked in several ministries before becoming vice-president of Energoatom in 2020. A year later, he was promoted to Minister of Energy, and then transferred to the Ministry of Justice in July 2025.
"The timing of Mindich and Halushchenko’s first meeting is unclear. Both insist that they know each other only in passing and that their children attended the same school. Investigators know that, since December 2020, money has apparently been regularly flowing from Mindich’s circle to Halushchenko, although both men deny this," the authors noted.
Office
The office is located between St Sophia’s Cathedral and St Michael’s Monastery.
One of Mindich’s lawyers says that it was there that "exclusive financial services for a wide clientele" were provided.
It is believed that a friend of Mindich’s (presumably Oleksandr Tsukerman) served as a sort of managing director. According to investigators, he was assisted by an office manager, an accountant and an assistant.
During searches of the office in November 2025, NABU investigators found a safe stuffed with bundles of dollars. They also discovered a file named "Manhattan", in which the group, investigators believe, documented their cash and crypto transactions.
The scheme
"Like all large conglomerates, Energoatom constantly enters into countless contracts with suppliers of services and goods, primarily with construction firms. It is believed that the circle around Mindich and Halushchenko demanded payments from these contractors amounting to between 10 and 15 per cent of the contract value.
Those who refused allegedly faced threats that the work already carried out would not be paid for. Or that the contractor would be excluded from future tenders. This is a classic corruption scheme, which prosecutors refer to as a ‘kickback’ system," the authors of the report explained.
At the same time, Energoatom was shielded from creditors’ claims by an order from the Ministry of Strategic Industries, which effectively served as a gift to those involved.
British nuclear energy expert Tim Stone, who was appointed to Energoatom’s supervisory board in the summer of 2024, told journalists that he had no opportunity whatsoever to detect kickback payments. On the contrary: according to him, the management and the Ministry of Energy systematically prevented the supervisory board from fulfilling its supervisory role.
Attempt to extend influence to other companies
Die Zeit reports that Minister Halushchenko attempted to extend the system to other state-owned companies, in particular Ukrenergo.
Former Ukrenergo head Kudrytskyi said that Halushchenko had proposed appointing "his own people" to the company and had spoken to him directly about this.
Where did the money go?
"When investigators tried to trace where the allegedly stolen $112 million had gone, they found indications that some of the money may have gone to Russia," the journalists write.
"Dynasty"
The authors also mention the "Dynasty" cooperative. Ukrainian media link it to Mindich, Yermak, Chernyshov and Zelenskyy.
"It is believed that nearly €9 million was laundered through this construction project. Mindich’s lawyer says the project was already in the planning stage in 2018 – before Zelenskyy’s presidency – and that Mindich invested only legal funds. All parties involved, he says, have since withdrawn from the project. When Yermak’s lawyer was approached for comment, he told DIE ZEIT that Yermak had never set foot on the construction site and had not made any payments," the authors noted.
At the same time, investigators from anti-corruption agencies uncovered a complex offshore structure which, in their view, is linked to Halushchenko.
"It is said that since 2021, money laundered through corruption has been flowing from Kyiv via the Caribbean island of Anguilla, funds in the Marshall Islands and a trust in St Kitts and Nevis to Swiss accounts – at least $7.4 million, plus several million more in euros and Swiss francs.
Investigators say that Halushchenko’s ex-wife had access to these accounts. She lives in Geneva. Their three children are believed to attend the private school Collège Alpin Beau Soleil. Investigators say they have discovered that the children’s education will cost over €550,000 in the 2024–25 academic year alone. As energy minister, Halushchenko earned less than €40,000 during this period. His lawyer says there is no evidence that his client transferred even a single cent to these accounts," the journalists noted.
The lawyers for all the suspects completely reject the charges. They claim that no one has yet proven that the money in question is of illegal origin. They say there is no evidence of bribery. And where there was no corruption, there cannot be money laundering – and, of course, there was no criminal ring. They claim that the accused did not know each other, or, if they did, only in passing.
Attack on NABU
In 2019, during the election campaign, Zelenskyy promised to fight corruption, journalists recalled.
In 2022, following the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, the fight against corruption took a back seat for Zelenskyy.
Currently, according to polls, most Ukrainians consider corruption to be the country’s second most pressing problem after the war with Russia.
It was not until 2025 that the NABU notified around 280 individuals that they were under suspicion. Among them were members of parliament, high-ranking government officials, judges and prosecutors, heads of state-owned companies, as well as officers of the armed forces and other security agencies.
"In the summer of 2025, Zelensky signed a law stripping NABU of its powers. The legislation allowed the Prosecutor General to transfer NABU investigations to another body, taking them out of the hands of anti-corruption investigators. Opposition politicians suspect that Andriy Yermak, who was head of Zelenskyy’s presidential office at the time, drafted the law and pushed it through parliament for personal gain. Zelenskyy signed the bill and bears political responsibility for it," the publication writes.
The day before the vote on this bill, the SBU detained two NABU investigators on suspicion of possible links to Russia.
"The attack on the independence of anti-corruption bodies became a challenge. Outraged citizens took to the streets for the first demonstrations during the war. The EU voiced sharp criticism and warned that the rule of law remains central to accession negotiations. A few days later, Zelenskyy withdrew the law.
It cannot be proven whether the move against NABU is linked to the investigation into the corruption ring. It also remains unclear who ordered the arrest of the NABU investigators. The SBU reports directly to the president, and his senior adviser, Yermak, is said to have had significant influence over the service," the authors noted.
Yermak’s role
Journalists write that Yermak was seen as the anchor of the ruling system.
"He protected the president from political attacks, controlled the administration and served as a link to the ruling parliamentary faction. Western intelligence agencies suspect that, at the very least, he was aware of the corruption case and the investigation," the authors noted.
On 28 November 2025, NABU carried out searches at Yermak’s premises, and on 11 May 2026, it notified him that he was under suspicion.
Yermak’s lawyer says that all the charges were false and that NABU is conducting a media campaign.
Is there a link to the peace talks?
Meanwhile, NABU has stated that the president is not a subject of investigation in the "Mindichgate" case.
"However, it is clear that the case is closely linked to the peace talks between Ukraine, Russia and the US. The first details of the corruption scandal involving Energoatom leaked just as the US presented its 28-point plan in the autumn to end the war. The list read as if it had been written in Moscow, and Zelenskyy categorically refused to sign it – and that is when the scandal erupted. Insiders suspect that the US administration orchestrated the leak of details of the case to break Zelenskyy’s resistance," the authors of the article believe.
In addition to Chancellor Merz, President Zelenskyy also discussed the matter with French President Macron, British Prime Minister Starmer and European Commission President von der Leyen.
"Under pressure from the investigations and the Europeans, Zelenskyy eventually replaced a significant portion of his presidential and government teams at the turn of the year.
The investigations are not yet complete, and the demands of Merz and other Europeans have not yet been met. Investigators still have work to do. New details continue to emerge; some suggest the case may extend far beyond the energy sector.
While most of the alleged members of the circle are in custody, diamond trader Mindich continues to live peacefully in Israel. He fled Ukraine just hours before the NABU raids in November," the authors noted.
Mindich’s lawyer stated that his client would speak to journalists, but cancelled the interview at the last minute.
"Any public activity by Mindich, according to him, could significantly harm his interests in Israel. After all, Ukraine has submitted a request to Jerusalem for Mindich’s extradition," the authors concluded.
