Andriy Yermak, the man who until just over 24 hours ago was Zelensky‘s right hand man and the president’s top most powerful aid as chief of staff, and Ukraine’s appointed chief negotiator with the US on the peace process, is going to the front lines, apparently to “fight”.
After his home and offices were raided by Ukraine’s anti-corruption investigators Friday related to the ongoing massive energy sector kickback scandal, Yermak announced by text message to The New York Post, “I’m going to the front and am prepared for any reprisals.” He followed with, “I am an honest and decent person.”
The Post added further, “He then apologized if he no longer answers calls. He did not say when or how he intended to go to the frontlines of the war against Russia.”
He appears to still be rejecting allegations he was involved in the graft probe, centered on at least $100 million being siphoned off by corrupt Ukrainian officials amid a series of payoffs and kickbacks.
The narrative in his defense is being spun by the same NY Post report, which suggests this is all merely ‘political’ due largely to jealously and growing rivalries related to the enormous decision-making influence Yermak was coming to wield:
Despite his towering frame, you might not always have spotted him. Yet, wherever President Volodymyr Zelensky was, Yermak was often not far away.
As his chief of staff, Yermak wielded enormous power at the top of government and was even trusted to negotiate on Ukraine’s behalf at peace talks with the US.
But as his influence grew, so did public resentment of the power this unelected official held. His political career came to an abrupt end on Friday, hours after anti-corruption investigators raided his home in Kyiv.
But clearly his dramatic declaration of “going to the front lines” is meant to signal a sense of self-sacrificial patriotism and induce feelings of sympathy.
Oleksandr Dubinskyi, a rare and controversial oppositional lawmaker in Ukraine’s parliament who has long called for Zelensky’s impeachment, has a very different take based on his sources. He detailed in an X post a series of specific claims, the chief of which is that Yermak is ‘hiding’ from anti-corruption investigators:
I have learned where exactly he is going to “serve.”
Fact: Yermak, with his security detail, was brought to the location of commander nicknamed Madjar – one of the most media-prominent Ukrainian fighters, known for harsh Telegram rhetoric and the “Drone Wall” project. Unit commanders refuse to assign Yermak to their ranks.
He is physically present but has no tasks, no role, and no assigned position. Yermak is hiding from NABU anti-corruption investigations in a zone where detectives cannot serve him a notice of suspicion or court summons.
