KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced Friday the resignation of his powerful chief of staff, Andrii Yermak, whose residence was searched earlier in the day by anti-corruption investigators.
Yermak has been Ukraine’s lead negotiator in peace talks with Russia and the United States and a trusted confidante of Zelenskyy for years.
The unprecedented searches at the heart of Ukraine’s government come as Kyiv faces intense U.S. pressure to sign a peace deal nearly four years after Russia’s invasion. Two national anti-corruption agencies said their searches targeted Yermak. Oleksii Tkachuk, a spokesperson for Yermak, said the agencies had not served Yermak a notice of suspicion, meaning he was not formally a suspect, and that Yermak had not been told what the searches related to.
Yermak confirmed investigators searched his apartment inside the presidential compound in downtown Kyiv, where checkpoints limit public access. Media reports said his office was also searched, though investigators declined to comment. It was not clear where Zelenskyy or Yermak were at the time of the morning raid.
“The investigators are facing no obstacles,” Yermak wrote on the messaging app Telegram, adding he was cooperating fully and his lawyers were present.
Energy sector
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office are leading a major probe into a $100 million energy sector corruption scandal involving top officials that has dominated domestic headlines in recent weeks. It was unclear if the searches of Yermak were connected to that case. NABU spokesperson Anton Tatarnikov declined to comment, citing legal restrictions on ongoing probes.
A spokesperson for the European Commission, Guillaume Mercier, told Ukrainian local news outlet Radio Svoboda that Brussels was following developments closely and that the searches showed Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies were working. He added that fighting corruption is central to Ukraine’s EU accession.
Investigators suspect Tymur Mindich, a one-time business partner of Zelenskyy, was the plot’s mastermind. Mindich has fled the country, and any criminal proceedings against him would likely proceed in absentia. Two top government ministers have resigned in the scandal.
Two of Yermak’s former deputies — Oleh Tatarov and Rostyslav Shurma — left the government in 2024 after watchdogs investigated them for financial wrongdoing. A third deputy, Andrii Smyrnov, has been investigated for bribes and other alleged misconduct but remains employed by Yermak.
Political turmoil
The scandal has compounded Zelenskyy’s problems as he seeks continued Western support for Ukraine’s war effort and tries to ensure ongoing foreign funding. The European Union has told Zelenskyy he must crack down on graft.
Zelenskyy faced an unprecedented rebellion from his own lawmakers earlier this month after investigators published details of the energy sector probe. Although Yermak has not been accused of wrongdoing, several senior lawmakers in Zelenskyy’s party said Yermak should take responsibility to restore public trust and warned the party could split if he remained. Zelenskyy initially defied those calls.
Zelenskyy urged Ukrainians to unite and “stop the political games” amid U.S. pressure to reach a settlement with Russia.
Yermak met Zelenskyy more than 15 years ago when Yermak was a lawyer moving into TV production and Zelenskyy was a well-known comedian and actor. Yermak oversaw foreign affairs in Zelenskyy’s first presidential team and was promoted to chief of staff in February 2020. He has accompanied Zelenskyy on every trip abroad since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, and the president’s trust in him made Yermak’s influence appear nearly untouchable.
Domestically, officials describe Yermak as Zelenskyy’s gatekeeper; he is widely believed to have had a key role in selecting top government appointees, including prime ministers and ministers. Individuals connected to Yermak and the president’s office have been the subject of investigations before.