"No one approached me. I have no idea who this is about" – Klymenko on potential bribe to him in Khimprom case
Head of the National Security and Defense Council Ihor Klymenko said no one from the Khimprom drug cartel had attempted to bribe him.
As Censor.NET reports, he said this at a meeting with journalists.
He said the best evidence that the drug cartel had failed to buy him was that the government resolution discussed by those involved in the case on the NABU recordings had been adopted in April 2026, with amendments banning derivatives of narcotic substances introduced on October 19 this year.
"No one approached me at all. I have never had such conversations with anyone. Exerting pressure over drugs and the Cabinet resolution — that’s what they meant. Well, they exerted pressure, and look how that turned out: the resolution is in place, U420 is gone," Klymenko said, commenting on the third installment of recordings from NABU and SAPO’s Operation Carthage.
Asked who could theoretically have offered him a bribe while he was a minister, he said: "I have no idea who is being referred to, because there is no one who could have pressured me. Moreover, there was no one, either in my inner circle or even among my more distant acquaintances, who could have influenced me."
According to Klymenko, he does not know his procedural status in the Khimprom case. He suggested he might be a witness.
Klymenko also outlined the history of the investigation into the U420 chain and Khimprom:
"In September 2025, criminal proceedings were opened concerning U420. This work took operatives and investigators more than six months, including forensic examinations and operational work.
At the same time, we worked to prevent drug gangs from exploiting legislative loopholes by constantly changing the chemical formulas of this synthetic cannabinoid.
On February 5, the government adopted the relevant decision, which I presented, to prevent criminals from changing the chemical formula and, consequently, from selling it in shops.
At the same time, we were doing extensive work concerning hundreds of shops that were initially opening both in Kyiv and in other regions. After the Bihus.Info investigation was released in March, inquiries and appeals began coming in, including from members of parliament. I said we needed another two or three weeks to complete all the procedural actions that had been underway since September.
The National Police conducted several hundred searches in April, and to this day, not a single shop has reopened. We also worked with law enforcement agencies in other countries. As a result, that chain no longer exists today. I mean those shops and that opportunity to make money. We eliminated all of that back in April.
Another resolution concerning the chemical formula of this synthetic cannabinoid was adopted in October.
In April this year, the National Police of Ukraine held a briefing and played some of the recordings. In them, Mexican can be heard threatening police officers and the leadership of the Department for Combating Drug Crime.
Those recordings also included talk of replacing the interior minister — me at the time. Because we were preparing a resolution to have the chemical formulas of U420 souvenirs classified as prohibited. The criminals wanted to exploit precisely that loophole in the legislation.
Mexican threatened to create a political crisis for us and have us removed from our positions. Once new people took those positions, he would make arrangements with them.
As for the references to the interior minister and the health minister, I can say this was normal for them — ‘bullshit talk’ between two criminals, if I may put it that way. Excuse the slang. That was how they discussed ways to resolve their problem. And we were a real problem for them.
That is why dismantling this organization, within the scope of our authority, was a matter of principle for the National Police and the Interior Ministry. Today, and I want to repeat this, the U420 chain no longer exists as a result of our special operation. Not a single shop has resumed operations.
If I remember correctly, they wanted to make up to half a million dollars a week in Kyiv. There is a lot of information, so I am ready to answer questions."
