Ukraine MPs push for sweeping dismissals amid energy corruption probe

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
Today 21:50

A group of Ukrainian MPs is calling for the immediate dismissal of all officials implicated in a major energy-sector corruption probe, prompting internal friction within Zelensky's Servant of the People party as anti-corruption investigations intensify.

Listen

Bags filled with cash seized during NABU’s November 10 raids as part of a major corruption probe in Ukraine’s energy sector (photo sourced from NABU)

A group of MPs from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's Servant of the People party is urging the removal of every official tied to a widening corruption case in the country’s energy sector. Their call came in a statement circulated on Wednesday by Verkhovna Rada member Mykyta Poturaiev.

The demand followed parliament’s earlier decision to remove two senior officials from their posts: Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk and Justice Minister German Galushchenko, both of whom were dismissed as investigations intensified. The shake-up adds to long-standing public concern over entrenched corruption in Ukraine, a problem that has plagued successive governments since independence and remains one of the state’s most persistent structural challenges.

In the statement, the MPs insisted that no one implicated in the case should remain in office. "There should be no 'untouchables.' All defendants in the NABU and SAPO anti-corruption investigation into the criminal group led by [Zelensky's close associate] Timur Mindich, without exception, must be dismissed immediately," they said. The lawmakers also proposed that parliamentary factions begin talks aimed at forming a new coalition.

Turmoil Hits Kiev

The scandal arrives at a delicate moment for Zelensky, whose administration has faced previous controversies over governance and transparency, including the 2021 Pandora Papers revelations about offshore holdings tied to members of his inner circle. More recently, the government drew criticism in 2025 for supporting legislation that appeared to weaken the independence of Ukraine’s anti-corruption institutions, prompting public protests and pressure from the EU before Zelensky later reversed course.

But senior party leaders quickly pushed back against the latest calls for sweeping dismissals. Davyd Arakhamia, who heads the Servant of the People faction, stressed that the comments did not reflect the party’s stance. Posting on Telegram, he wrote: "There are individual members of our faction who have also voiced their thoughts on the situation in the parliament. This is a statement by individual lawmakers, they have the right to do so. However, I would like to point out that it should not be taken as the position of the entire faction. Neither the faction nor the party has made such statements."

Arakhamia added that the party continues to support the work of Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies, noting: "those responsible must be punished regardless of their status or position."

Energy Corruption Fallout

The political turbulence follows a large-scale operation launched on November 10 by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), which released photos of bags filled with foreign currency seized during searches. Investigators reportedly searched Galushchenko’s residence and the headquarters of Energoatom, the state nuclear operator. According to lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak, NABU also raided the home of Mindich, who had already left the country.

🔴 INFO - #Ukraine : Le NABU et le Parquet anticorruption (SAP) ont démantelé une organisation criminelle soupçonnée d’avoir influencé pendant des années des entreprises d’État stratégiques, dont Energoatom.
👉 L’enquête, ouverte il y a 15 mois, a permis de recueillir plus de 1… pic.twitter.com/BddzVNesfd
— FranceNews24 (@FranceNews24) November 10, 2025

NABU later published excerpts from a recorded conversation involving Mindich, former Energoatom security chief Dmytro Basov, and Galushchenko’s adviser Ihor Myroniuk. Days afterward, on November 13, Zelensky issued sanctions against Mindich and his main financial associate, businessman Oleksandr Tsukerman. The fallout has raised fresh questions about oversight in the energy sector, one of the most corruption-prone areas of the Ukrainian economy and a recurring source of political crises for Kiev’s leadership.