Latest news with #AndriyPortnov
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Portnov reportedly met controversial Zelensky staffer, Ukraine's investigations chief before being killed in Madrid
Former Ukrainian top official Andriy Portnov met in Ukraine with Oleh Tatarov, deputy head of the Presidential Office, and Oleksii Sukhachov, director of the State Bureau of Investigation, days before he was killed in Madrid, Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 29, citing undisclosed sources. Portnov was shot dead by unidentified attackers outside the American School in Madrid on May 21. Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that two or three people are believed to be involved in the attack, though no arrests have been made so far, and the motive remains unclear. Portnov served in the administration of pro-Kremlin President Viktor Yanukovych between 2010 and 2014. After the EuroMaidan Revolution, he lived alternately abroad and in Ukraine and was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2021 over allegations that he was involved in corruption. Four sources confirmed to Ukrainska Pravda that Portnov was in Ukraine between May 17 and 18 and held meetings with senior officials overseeing Ukraine's law enforcement agencies, including Tatarov and Sukhachov. The sources said they were unaware of the topics discussed. Tatarov is the most controversial official in President Volodymyr Zelensky's administration. He was charged with bribery before joining the administration, but the corruption case against him was obstructed by law enforcement agencies and courts and eventually closed. According to the media outlet's sources, Portnov has recently been seeking ways to have U.S. sanctions against him lifted. He also reportedly gathered information on the activities of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and civil society activists in Ukraine. The Kyiv Independent submitted official requests for comment to the Presidential Office and the State Bureau of Investigation but did not receive an immediate response. Portnov led the legal team of then-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko from 2005 to 2010 and sat in the parliament between 2006 and 2010. After 2010, he became the head of Yanukovych's main judiciary department and deputy head of his administration. The ex-official left Ukraine for Russia and later Austria after Yanukovych was ousted in the EuroMaidan Revolution in 2014, but returned to Ukraine in 2019. Portnov fled Ukraine again in 2022 after Russia's full-scale invasion broke out, even though the travel ban for military-age men was already in effect. Read also: Hated, tainted, and covertly pro-Russian — Andriy Portnov, the top Ukrainian ex-official shot dead in Spain We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The Independent
7 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Who is Andriy Portnov? Former Ukrainian politician killed on school run in Spain
A former Ukrainian politician and key aide to the ousted pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych has been killed. Andriy Portnov, 51, was gunned down on Wednesday morning outside the gates of the American School in Madrid's affluent neighbourhood of Pozuelo. Police received the call about the shooting at 9.15 am local time. Radio station Cadena SER said the man was taking his children to school when he was shot. Mr Portnov, from the eastern region of Luhansk, is a former Ukrainian politician closely tied to Yanukovych, having served as deputy head of the presidential office from 2010 to 2014. Yanukovych was Ukraine 's last pro-Russian president, who was ousted in 2014, following pro-democracy and pro-European Union protests, after he refused to sign an EU association pact, choosing instead to do an energy deal with Russia. During Yanukovych's presidency, Portnov was widely viewed as a pro-Kremlin political figure and was involved in drafting legislation, known as the 'laws of January 16', which were aimed at persecuting participants of the 2014 revolution in Ukraine. According to Ukrainian media, he later denied a role in their development but admitted to approving them for the then-president's signature. When Yanukovych fled Ukraine for Moscow that same year, effectively ending his premiership, Portnov reportedly followed him to the Russian capital. Portnov then faced numerous investigations and sanctions against him, both from Ukraine and the European Union. Ukraine's interior ministry labelled him a wanted person in 2015 but dropped the accusations a year later. The Council of the European Union slapped personal sanctions against him, along with 18 other associates of Yanukovych, but these were also later dropped due to a lack of evidence. He moved to Vienna, Austria, a year later, before eventually returning to Ukraine, where he ran a TV show criticising the presidency of Petro Poroshenko, the billionaire who assumed office after Yanukovych was ousted. In 2018, Ukraine's Security Service, or SBU, opened an investigation against him on suspicion of state treason, alleging his involvement in Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula. The criminal case was closed in 2019, and Portnov filed his own lawsuit demanding the allegations against him be treated as false. But in 2021, the US state department announced sweeping sanctions against Portnov, describing him as a 'court fixer'. 'Widely known as a court fixer, Portnov was credibly accused of using his influence to buy access and decisions in Ukraine's courts and undermining reform efforts,' the department said in a statement. 'As of 2019, Portnov took steps to control the Ukrainian judiciary, influence associated legislation, sought to place loyal officials in senior judiciary positions, and purchase court decisions.' They added that they believed Portnov had colluded with a high-ranking Ukrainian government official to shape the country's legal institutions to their advantage and influence Ukraine's Constitutional Court. He was also reportedly involved in an attempt to influence the Ukrainian Prosecutor-General.
BBC News
7 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Ukraine: Andriy Portnov's murder leaves unanswered questions and little sympathy
Andriy Portnov's murder in a Madrid suburb has shocked Ukrainians, but it has not exactly triggered an outpouring of controversial former official had just dropped his children off at the American School when he was shot several times in the car image of his lifeless body lying face down in a gym kit marked the end of a life synonymous with Ukrainian corruption and Russian media have been discussing the 51-year-old's frequent threats to journalists, as well as his huge influence under the country's last pro-Russian president, Viktor Yanukovych."A man who called for the killing of political opponents suddenly got what he wanted from others," observed reporter Oleksandr Holubov. News website Ukrayinska Pravda even called him "the devil's advocate". Rare words of restraint came from Portnov's once political rival Serhiy Vlasenko, an MP, who said: "You can't kill people. When discussing someone's death, we must remain human."Portnov was controversial and widely disliked. The motives for his murder may seem evident, but his death has still left unanswered questions. 'A kingpin' Before entering Ukrainian politics, Portnov ran a law firm. He worked with then-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko until 2010, before defecting to Yanukovych's camp when he won the election."It was a big story of betrayal," remembers Ukrainian journalist Kristina Berdynskykh. "Because Tymoshenko was a pro-Western politician, and Yanukovych pro-Russian." The adviser became the country's first deputy head of the Presidential Office and set up a national criminal code in 2012. For him, his critics say, his ascent was less about politics, and more about power and influence."He was just a good lawyer, everyone knew he was very smart," Kristina tells the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, Ukraine inherited a judicial system in desperate need of reform. Mykhailo Zhernakov, a legal expert and head of the Dejure Foundation believes Portnov remoulded it in order for the government to cover up illegal schemes, and to mask Russian attempts to control the country."He was the kingpin, mastermind and architect of this corrupt legal system designed to serve the pro-Russian administration at the time," he says. 'A rotten system' Over a decade, Portnov would sue journalists who wrote negative stories about him through the courts and judges he controlled. His attempts to control the judicial system would lead to him being sanctioned by the the time, Washington accused the adviser of placing loyal officials in senior positions for his own benefit, as well as "buying court decisions".Portnov later pursued activists who took part in Ukraine's Maidan Revolution, which toppled Viktor Yanukovych from power, and forced him to escape the country to Russia."He used sexual threats," says Oksana Romaniuk who remembers her and other journalists' interactions with Portnov director of the Institute of Mass Information, she monitors free speech in a damning report was published, the reaction was familiar and consistent. "When people exposed his corruption, he accused them of fake news," she says."Even when journalists had documents and testimonies backing up the allegations, it was impossible to win the lawsuits in court. It was impossible to defend yourself. It was a rotten system." Andriy Portnov eventually settled in Moscow after his old boss Yanukovych fled in 2014. Investigative reporter Maksym Savchuk subsequently investigated his ties to Moscow, as well as his extensive property portfolio there."He responded with words I don't want to quote, derogatory ones about my mother," he remembers. "It's a trait of his character; he is a very vindictive person."Even after leaving Ukraine, Portnov still tried to influence Ukrainian politics by taking control of pro-Kremlin TV channel returned in 2019, only to flee again with the full-scale invasion in irony of Portnov eventually settling in Spain and sending his children to a prestigious American school has not been lost on many. Alongside the undisguised delight in Portnov's death, there has been endless speculation over who was responsible."It could have been the Russians because he knew so many things," suggests legal expert Mykhailo Zhernakov."He was involved in so many shady Russian operations it could be them or other criminal groups. He managed to annoy a lot of people," he says. Despite the motives being clearer on this side of the border, Ukrainian security sources appear to be trying to distance themselves from the killing. Kyiv has previously carried out assassinations in Russian-occupied territory and in Russia itself, but not in Spanish media reports suggest his murder was not political, but rather over "economic reasons or revenge"."You can imagine how many people need to be interrogated in order to narrow down the suspects," thinks Maskym Savchuk. "Because this person has a thousand and one enemies."In Ukraine, Portnov is seen as someone who helped Russia form the foundations for its invasion. A once general dislike of him has only been intensified since this, Mykhailo Zhernakov hopes his death is also an opportunity for wider judicial reforms."Just because he's gone doesn't mean his influence has," he warns. "Because many of the people he appointed or helped get jobs are still in the system."Additional reporting by Hanna Chornous.
Metro
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Metro
Putin unleashes one of his biggest attacks on Ukraine since start of war
Vladimir Putin has unleashed one of the largest-scale attacks on Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion – just days after the first in-person negotiations for a ceasefire. Missiles and Iranian-made Shahed drones ripped through the midnight sky over Kyiv, injuring eight people. Fires rage across several districts, casting a hellish orange-yellow over the capital's skyline. Thick columns of smoke spiral high above. Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ Or you can submit your videos and pictures here. For more stories like this, check our news page. Follow on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here. MORE: Russian jet capable of carrying guided bombs performing 'dangerous maneuvers' near Nato territory MORE: UK exposes Russian hacking unit targeting air traffic systems and Western defences MORE: Ukrainian ex-Putin ally Andriy Portnov shot dead outside the American School in Madrid
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Controversial ex-official Portnov visited Ukraine days before being killed in Madrid, news outlet reports
Andriy Portnov, a former top official in ex-President Viktor Yanukovych's administration, visited Ukraine just days before he was shot dead in Madrid on May 21, the news outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported on May 23, citing unnamed sources. According to three interlocutors with knowledge of Portnov's movements — including sources in law enforcement and his inner circle — he was in Ukraine on May 17-18 and reportedly met with top law enforcement officials. Portnov, a lawyer and longtime political operative, was shot at least five times outside the American School in Madrid. Two or three individuals are believed to have taken part in the killing. Citing police sources, El Pais reported that Portnov was hit by at least three bullets, including one to the head, which proved fatal. No arrests have been reported so far. The killing comes amid resurfacing scrutiny of Portnov's activities in Ukraine, particularly his alleged ties to the judiciary and law enforcement. Portnov was Yanukovych's deputy chief of staff responsible for the judiciary and head of his administration's legal department. Even after Yanukovych was overthrown during the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution, Portnov reportedly retained significant influence over the judiciary. He fled Ukraine after the EuroMaidan Revolution, first relocating to Russia and later to Austria. He returned to Ukraine in 2019, but left again in 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion — reportedly skirting the wartime travel ban for military-age men. In 2021, the U.S. sanctioned Portnov for suspected corruption, accusing him of using influence over Ukraine's judicial system to secure favorable rulings and amass wealth. Portnov was also widely regarded as one of the most litigious figures among Ukraine's ex-officials. In 2024, a Kyiv court ruled in his favor in a defamation suit against several outlets, including the Kyiv Independent, over references to him as "pro-Russian." The contested article was authored by Glib Kanievskyi, now a defense ministry official. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) investigated Portnov over alleged involvement in the Russian occupation of Crimea. A treason case against him was opened in March 2018, but was later closed. Read also: Hated, tainted, and covertly pro-Russian — Andriy Portnov, the top Ukrainian ex-official shot dead in Spain We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
