Ruslan Kravchenko has hit back at Western-backed investigators after fleeing Ukraine<\/p>\n
Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who tendered his resignation last week over a major corruption scandal in his office, has announced formal accusations targeting Western-backed anti-graft agencies that exposed the wrongdoing.
\nThe news marks another turn in Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky\u2019s long-running feud with the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office (SAPO), which have targeted multiple figures in his inner circle since last November.
\nZelensky, who tried and failed to place the semi-independent agencies under the Prosecutor General\u2019s Office last year, has distanced himself from Kravchenko, whom he appointed in June 2025. The prosecutor general is currently out of the country.
\nWhy did the prosecutor general resign?
\nKravchenko requested dismissal after NABU and SAPO accused his top cybercrime investigator of extorting protection money from Ukraine\u2019s notorious scam-call centers. While he personally was not named as a suspect, surveillance records published by investigators implied that the criminal \u201cempire\u201d managed by a member of his office, cybercrime prosecutor Sergey Kropiva, was built for his chief.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Call of corruption: What you should know about Ukraine\u2019s billion-dollar scam industry milked by Zelensky\u2019s government<\/p>\n
While the prosecutor general asked to be relieved of his duties, his departure needs to be confirmed by the parliament.
\nKravchenko denied any wrongdoing. In a video statement released on Monday, he accused NABU and SAPO of forcing him out to shield their own personnel from prosecution. He claimed his office was overseeing investigations against people from NABU and SAPO in \u201cdozens of cities\u201d on suspicion of serious crimes.
\nWhat are the accusations?
\nThe outgoing official said he had signed accusations against NABU Director Semyon Krivonos and a person close to SAPO head Aleksandr Klimenko.
\nKrivonos is suspected of forging documents for personal benefit and to shield somebody from a trial.
\nThe person close to Klimenko \u2013 his wife Aleksandra, some Ukrainian sources said \u2013 was accused by Kravchenko of bribing judges serving in Ukraine\u2019s High Anti-Corruption Court.
\nA notice of suspicion is a procedural step in Ukrainian criminal investigations required for prosecution. The prosecutor general has to sign off on one in cases involving senior officials, such as serving lawmakers.
\nHow did the investigators react?
\nNABU denied the accusations, and said the statement was part of a political pressure campaign targeting it and its sister agency.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Kiev lacks political will to fight corruption \u2013 anti-graft chief<\/p>\n
It also denied Kravchenko\u2019s claims that it used the investigation into the cybercrime prosecutor to \u201csteal\u201d documents related to probes of its own personnel.
\nIt disputed the prosecutor general\u2019s assertion that he had signed accusations against Krivonos and Klimenko\u2019s associate, even though Kravchenko published relevant documents.
\nHow did Zelensky react?
\nThe Ukrainian leader posted a short statement, saying \u201cthis prosecutor general\u201d has no other choice but to resign and asking MPs to approve his request.
\n\u201cUkraine knows the reasons. If he considers it political pressure, let him say so,\u201d Zelensky said.
\nIs Kravchenko merely seeking personal revenge?
\nUkrainian media critical of Zelensky suspect that he and Kravchenko struck a deal, under which the prosecutor general was allowed to leave the country in exchange for giving Zelensky\u2019s office a legal tool to go after NABU and SAPO.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Zelensky likely \u2018directly involved in corruption\u2019 \u2013 EU-funded anti-graft NGO<\/p>\n
Kravchenko confirmed being on a \u201cworking visit\u201d outside of Ukraine, where he said he will warn Western officials of \u201cconcentration of undue influence\u201d in the hands of the agencies and the threat to Ukrainian sovereignty they purportedly pose.
\nAre NABU and SAPO political players?
\nThe agencies, which were created under Western pressure following the 2014 armed coup in Kiev, claim to be apolitical.
\nHowever, Ukrainian media believe them to be acting with the blessing of Western European governments and secretly in alignment with Ukrainian political forces unhappy with the concentration of power in Zelensky\u2019s hands.
\nTheir goal is reportedly to strip the presidential office of most of its control over law enforcement and national security institutions and put unelected Western-approved oversight committees in charge.
\nWho has Zelensky lost to corruption probes already?
\nZelensky, whose presidential mandate expired in May 2024, rules Ukraine under martial law. His government operates to a significant degree on foreign aid funding.
\nMany corruption cases exposed by NABU and SAPO have focused on people close to Zelensky, such as his former business associate Timur Mindich, former chief of staff Andrey Yermak, and former Unity Minister Aleksey Chernyshov, who allegedly siphoned off and laundered budget money to enrich themselves.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
\u2018Damage has been done\u2019: Ukraine\u2019s anti-corruption czar slams Zelensky<\/p>\n
How long did Kravchenko serve as prosecutor general?
\nKravchenko is the fourth person to hold the job under Zelensky. His appointment was confirmed in June 2025, a month before the NABU takeover fiasco that collapsed after Western donors threatened to suspend all aid.
\nHis predecessor, Andrey Kostin, held the position between 2022 and 2024 and currently serves as Kiev\u2019s ambassador in the Netherlands and representative at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. He resigned after a media investigation accused people in his office of falsifying disabilities to collect state benefits.
\nBefore Kostin was Irina Venediktova, who likewise switched to a diplomatic career after a two-year stint as prosecutor general. She now represents Kiev in Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
\nRuslan Ryaboshapka, Zelensky\u2019s first prosecutor general, is now a private citizen living with his family in France. He was removed from office by the Ukrainian parliament allegedly for his leniency towards Zelensky\u2019s predecessor, former President Pyotr Poroshenko.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ruslan Kravchenko has hit back at Western-backed investigators after fleeing Ukraine Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who tendered his resignation last week over a major corruption scandal in his office,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":38065,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-38064","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t