Latest news with #VitaliyShabunin
NBC News
22-07-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Ukraine conducts widespread searches, arrests of anti-corruption officials
Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency on Monday and conducted dozens of searches, in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. Ambassadors of Group of Seven nations in Kyiv issued a statement saying they had a 'shared commitment' to uphold transparency and independent institutions. But the ambassadors said they had met NABU officials and had 'serious concerns and intend to discuss these developments with government leaders.' NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said, although it also added that some of the cases were about links to Russia. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant,' this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution,' NABU said in a statement. Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office for exposing corrupt officials. On Monday, Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Zelenskiy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler on at least 60 occasions. Separately, it had detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia. A third SBU statement said some senior NABU officials had ties to lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko, believed to have fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022. A separate law enforcement body, the State Bureau of Investigations, said it had served suspicion notices to three NABU employees for road accidents that had resulted in injuries. NABU said the road traffic accident cases were between two and four years old. Transparency International said conducting the searches without court orders 'demonstrates the massive nature of the pressure by the SBU and (Prosecutor General's Office) on anti-corruption law enforcement agencies'. It called on Zelenskyy to guarantee the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies.
Irish Independent
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Ukrainian security service arrests so many key anti-corruption agency workers that it can no longer function
The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant', this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution', NABU said in a statement. Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged with fraud and evading military service. Mr Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from president Volodymyr Zelensky's office for exposing corrupt officials. Yesterday, Mr Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Mr Zelensky's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler at least 60 times. Separately, it detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia.
Bloomberg
22-07-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Ukraine's Has a Self-Inflicted Handicap in Its War for Survival
It is never a good sign when governments accused of corruption raid the agencies and activists trying to hold them to account. This happens routinely in repressive dictatorships including, notoriously, Russia, but now also in Ukraine, which is neither. It's something the country cannot afford, just as it asks taxpayers across Europe to pump tens of billions of additional euros into its defense. On Monday, security officers raided the offices of Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau, NABU, detaining at least 15 of its investigators. Two were held on suspicion of working with Russia, but according to the bureau, most were accused of infringements unrelated to their work, such as traffic violations. Separately, security services also inspected the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, known as SAPO. This is, tragically for Ukraine, part of an emerging pattern. On July 11, armed officers from the State Bureau of Investigations also raided the Kyiv home of activist Vitaliy Shabunin and the military post where serves in Kharkiv, seizing phones and tablets from him and his family. Shabunin was accused of defrauding the state by continuing to draw his military salary while on business trips for the Anti-Corruption Action Center, the non-profit that he heads. Shabunin, who said in a Telegram post that President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was 'taking the first but confident steps towards corrupt authoritarianism,' is a controversial figure with a sharp tongue. But that shouldn't matter. His arrest was, despite government denials, politically driven. So were Monday's raids, and they're symbolic of a wider problem that could soon have direct, corrosive effects on the nation's war effort. This has all come since NABU accused Oleksiy Chernyshov, a deputy prime minister with close ties to Zelenskiy and his family, of taking a $345,000 bribe on a property deal, an allegation he denies. It's hard to know whether to see this as proof that NABU is ready to tackle wrongdoing at the highest levels, or as evidence of rot at the heart of the system. It is essential that Zelenskiy ensures his international partners conclude the former. Prosecuting Shabunin, who was vocal in pressing for the inquiry, won't help that cause. The latest backsliding also comes after the defense ministry in January chased out a respected reformer, Maryna Bezrukova, from the Defense Procurement Agency, which was created to speed and clean up government's arms purchases. Bezrukova had gained praise from Western embassies for ejecting the middlemen milking the process. The agency was supposed to be independent. Then, last month, Zelenskiy's Servant of the People Party proposed a draft law that would offer immunity from criminal prosecution to anyone involved in the manufacture or purchase of arms that contribute to Ukraine's defense. There's a legitimate intent for this legislation, which is to protect officials from prosecution for doing whatever it took to get arms into the hands of fighters in the first days of Russia's invasion. But that time has passed. Adopted in its current form, the bill would amount to a charter for defense industry corruption. For anyone who, like me, has traveled in and out of Kyiv since it gained independence in 1991, let alone Ukrainians themselves, this is all deeply frustrating. The country has one of the strongest civil societies in the world. Time and again, Ukrainians have shown extraordinary courage to defend the rights they believe should be theirs, mounting two successful revolutions and defending against Russian invasion for more than a decade. Despite all this and enormous progress on reform since 2014, corruption remains this country's kryptonite.
Straits Times
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
Ukraine conducts widespread searches, arrests of anti-corruption officials
Find out what's new on ST website and app. KYIV - Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency on Monday and conducted dozens of searches, in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting "massive pressure" on Ukraine's corruption fighters. NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. "In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents," the statement said, although it also added that some of the cases were about links to Russia. Although the risk of Russian infiltration "remained relevant," this could not be a justification to "halt the work of the entire institution", NABU said in a statement. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Subsidies and grants for some 20,000 people miscalculated due to processing issue: MOH Asia At least 19 killed as Bangladesh air force plane crashes at college campus Singapore ST Explains: What does it mean for etomidate to be listed under the Misuse of Drugs Act? Business Why Singapore and its businesses stand to lose with US tariffs on the region Singapore NTU to have compulsory cadaver dissection classes for medical students from 2026 World US authorities probing passenger jet's close call with B-52 bomber over North Dakota Singapore Jail for man who conspired with another to bribe MOH agency employee with $18k Paris trip Singapore New research institute will grow S'pore's talent in nuclear energy, safety 'PRESSURE' Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's office for exposing corrupt officials. On Monday, Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Zelenskiy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler on at least 60 occasions. Separately, it had detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia. A third SBU statement said some senior NABU officials had ties to lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko, believed to have fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022. A separate law enforcement body, the State Bureau of Investigations, said it had served suspicion notices to three NABU employees for road accidents that had resulted in injuries. NABU said the road traffic accident cases were between two and four years old. Transparency International said conducting the searches without court orders "demonstrates the massive nature of the pressure by the SBU and (Prosecutor General's Office) on anti-corruption law enforcement agencies". It called on Zelenskiy to guarantee the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies. REUTERS
Bloomberg
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Ukraine Anti-Graft Activist Accused of Dodging Army Service
Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation accused the head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center, Vitaliy Shabunin, of evading military service, raising concerns of possible political revenge. The investigators said late Friday on their website that their actions weren't related to Shabunin's work. He is suspected of 'systematically evading military service and using a vehicle intended for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine without legal grounds,' the statement said.
