EDITORIAL: Corruption scandal weakens Ukraine

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With Canada providing $22 billion in aid to Ukraine, the growing corruption scandal reaching President Volodymyr Zelensky's office is raising legitimate questions for taxpayers.

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Zelensky was not included in the investigation or accused of wrongdoing, and we in no way suggest that this justifies Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine.

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But the growing scandal over an alleged $100 million kickback scheme in Ukraine's crucial energy sector has already engulfed his chief of staff Andriy Yermak, two cabinet ministers and Timur Mindich, Zelensky's former business partner who is now on the run from Ukrainian authorities.

Yermak, widely considered Ukraine's second most powerful man, led his delegation at ongoing peace talks aimed at ending the war caused by Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Zelensky announced his resignation on Friday, and Ermak issued a statement saying he was fully cooperating with the joint investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office.

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Ukrainians affected by the nearly four-year war are rightly outraged that while they donated money to support Ukrainian military, business and political insiders, they allegedly engaged in kickback and money laundering schemes to illegally profit from contracts designed to protect Ukraine's power grid from blackouts due to Russian airstrikes.

All this comes at the worst possible time for the Ukrainian president and the best time for Putin, as US President Donald Trump tries to negotiate an end to the war.

Putin and his cronies will use these accusations to promote their false claim that the Zelensky government is “illegal.”

It also bolsters Ukraine's pre-war reputation for widespread corruption, which the European Union has said must be addressed before Ukraine can join the EU.

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Zelensky was elected president in 2019 on a promise to end corruption, although some critics have since questioned his willingness to do so.

On the contrary, the EU, UN and G7 have praised Zelensky's efforts to fight corruption.

The fact that two independent investigative agencies are looking into the latest allegations against the top echelons of the Zelensky administration suggests that its prosecutorial system – while it may be flawed – is working.

But, nevertheless, the ongoing scandal has weakened Zelensky’s position in negotiations to end the war.

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