Ukrainian agencies deny preparing charges against head of Zelensky's faction, chief anti-graft prosecutor
Law enforcement agencies on Nov. 24 denied preparing charges against Ukraine's chief anti-corruption prosecutor, Oleksandr Klymenko, and David Arakhamia, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's party faction in parliament.
The statements come amid media reports that the President's Office was allegedly preparing to retaliate against Klymenko and Arakhamia over their independent stances on a large-scale corruption scandal involving state nuclear power monopoly Energoatom.
The President's Office, Klymenko, and Arakhamia did not respond to requests for comment.
Eight suspects have been charged by Klymenko's Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) in the Energoatom case, the biggest corruption investigation during Zelensky's presidency. Timur Mindich, a close associate of the president, is allegedly the ringleader.
Media outlet Ukrainska Pravda reported on Nov. 24, citing its sources, that the President's Office intended to make the Prosecutor General's Office and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) bring high treason charges against Arakhamia, head of the Servant of the People's faction in parliament.
The charges would reportedly be in retaliation for his alleged opposition to Zelensky's chief of staff Andriy Yermak and his calls for policy changes to address concerns about high-level corruption.
However, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko and Vasyl Malyuk, head of the SBU, refused to charge Arakhamia, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
Yermak has also instructed law enforcement agencies to prepare charges against Klymenko, according to Ukrainska Pravda's sources.
Two law enforcement sources also told the Kyiv Independent that charges against Klymenko and Semen Kryvonos, head of the NABU, were being prepared.
The SBU and the Prosecutor General's Office denied receiving any instructions to charge Klymenko and Arakhamia.
"No such 'instructions,' 'requests,' or 'hints' were received by the SBU from the President's Office or any other body," the SBU's press service said, as cited by Ukrainska Pravda.
The Prosecutor General's Office said that "at present there is no evidence that could serve as the basis for such a procedural decision" against Arakhamia.
"The situation regarding other individuals mentioned in the report — in particular, the heads of other law enforcement agencies — is similar," the Prosecutor General's Office added.
This is not the first time when media reports emerge on possible charges against Klymenko.
Ukrainian media outlet Babel reported in October, citing its sources, that Klymenko was being investigated by the SBU in relation to a case brought against pro-Russian lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko.
Khrystenko has been charged with treason for allegedly cooperating with Russian intelligence. He had been living in Dubai but was brought back to Ukraine in September.
The SBU claimed in July that Khrystenko had been in contact with NABU detectives and was influencing the bureau.
"Such reports, as well as a number of clearly illegal actions against NABU employees that have already taken place, are nothing other than a continuation of pressure on anti-corruption agencies," Klymenko told the Kyiv Independent in October.
Klymenko added that the reported investigation "no longer comes as a surprise" amid tension between the anti-corruption agencies and the President's Office.
"These actions and pressure are linked to a number of criminal proceedings that the NABU and SAPO are currently actively investigating," Klymenko added.
