VOLODYMYR Zelensky’s chief of staff and trusted top aid has quit amid an anti-corruption probe.
Ukraine was thrown into fresh chaos after shock dawn raids pf Andriy Yermak’s house this morning.
Announcing the resignation on Telegram, Zelensky said: “Russia really wants Ukraine to make mistakes.
“There will be no mistakes on our part.”
As the President Trump-backed peace plan gathers speed, the Ukrainian leader is keen to put on a unified front.
He added: “We are now preparing for a meeting with the American side to discuss the steps needed to secure a genuine peace, and one that is worthy of our people.
“At a time when all attention is fixed on diplomacy and on defending the country during the war, we must draw on our inner strength… and for that inner strength to hold, there must be no distractions from anything other than the defence of Ukraine.
“I want there to be no doubts about our country, from anyone.”
Zelensky is prepping a shake-up of his presidential office after the bombshell announcement, calling it a “full reboot”.
Yermak has been Ukraine’s lead negotiator in peace talks with Russia and the United States.
He has also been a trusted confidante of Zelensky’s for years and has sat at the heart of Zelensky’s inner circle.
The Ukrainian leader said: “I am grateful to Andrii for consistently presenting Ukraine’s position at the negotiating table exactly as it ought to be presented. His stance has always been staunchly patriotic.”
This morning, two national watchdogs confirmed Yermak was a target, but his spokesperson insisted he hadn’t been named a suspect and still had no idea what the raid was about.
Yermak addressed the raid on Telegram, saying: “The investigators are facing no obstacles.”
Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies have been digging into accusations that top officials have skimmed around £75million off the country’s energy sector at a time of great turmoil.
The scandal that has rocked the country for weeks.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office are probing claims involving top officials.
A NABU spokesperson refused to say if Yermak’s raid was linked, citing strict secrecy rules.
A European Commission spokesperson said the dramatic searches show Ukraine’s watchdogs are doing their jobs, and reminded Kyiv that cleaning up corruption is key to joining the EU.
Investigators believe Tymur Mindich – once a business partner of Zelensky – masterminded the alleged scheme.
He’s since fled abroad and will likely be tried in absentia. Two more government chiefs have already quit.
Yermak’s circle has been scorched before: ex-deputies Oleh Tatarov and Rostyslav Shurma resigned last year over rumours of financial wrongdoing.
Another, Andrii Smyrnov, was investigated over bribes but remains in office.
The scandal piles more pain onto Zelensky as he seeks weapons and financial backing from Western allies, while the EU demands tougher action on corruption.
Earlier this month, Zelensky faced a near-revolt inside his own party after investigators dropped bombshell new details from the energy probe.
Yermak wasn’t named in the scandal, but furious MPs said he should still carry the blame to restore public trust.
Some even threatened a party split unless Zelensky fired him, but the president refused to budge.
With Washington pushing Kyiv to strike a deal with Russia, Zelensky’s urged the country to unite.
Yermak met Zelenskyy over 15 years ago when he was a lawyer venturing into the TV production business and Zelensky was a famous Ukrainian comedian and actor.
The disgraced staffer oversaw foreign affairs during Zelensky’s first term and was promoted to chief of staff in February 2020.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion, he’s accompanied Zelensky on every foreign trip, cementing a reputation as the president’s right-hand man.
Domestically, he’s described as Zelensky’s gatekeeper, and he is widely believed to pull the strings with all top government appointees, including prime ministers and ministers.
This is not the first time allies of Yermak and Zelensky have come under fire.
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