From Moscow to Kyiv: War Unleashes Corruption Scandals

It seems that scandals have spared neither Russia nor Ukraine over the past two years, with a slight advance for Kyiv in this area. In the latest corruption suspicions impacting Ukrainian leadership, Ukrainian Minister of Agriculture Mykola Solskyi has submitted his resignation. Ukrainian Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk announced in a message published last night on Facebook that the parliament "received a letter of resignation from Solskyi." The message stated, "I request that you accept my resignation from the position of Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food." Now, elected officials must approve the resignation of the minister accused of seizing state lands prior to joining the government. Solskyi is suspected of seizing state-owned land worth approximately 6.9 million euros. This resignation follows the arrest of Russian Deputy Minister of Defense Timur Ivanov just two days ago, in the largest corruption case shaking the country since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Previously, former Deputy Minister of Culture Olga Yarelova was also arrested and charged in April 2023 with embezzling over 200 million rubles (2.2 million dollars). Yarelova, who held her position from 2018 to 2022, is currently on trial and faces a potential sentence of seven years in prison. Similarly, several corruption cases have emerged in Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion in February 2022, particularly within the military. Moreover, tackling rampant corruption in Ukraine is one of the key conditions imposed on the country as part of its request for European Union membership.