U.S. Representative Victoria Spartz said that President Volodymyr Zelensky's Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak launched a “smear campaign” against her after she voiced concerns over his integrity. In a press release published on July 11, congresswoman responded to the criticism about raising this issue for political benefit. “After trying to resolve this issue internally for some time, I am raising it publicly out of major concern,” Spartz wrote. She also criticized aid allocation, claiming that Kyiv prioritizes reconstruction of the “nonessential infrastructure” over support for soldiers. Earlier today Vitaliy Shabunin, head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center’s executive board, said that the best way to stop attacks undermining the trust in Ukrainian government is to address the key issues, namely to remove Yermak's deputy Oleh Tatarov, who is responsible for anti-corruption efforts at the Office of the President. Tatarov has been holding up key leadership appointments across several anti-corruption agencies.
