Sacked Fedorov: Zelensky must answer on corruption
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- Mykhailo Fedorov told the BBC Zelensky must answer whether he was aware of corruption in his inner circle, but said he never personally witnessed the president engage in corrupt activity: "not a single time have I received from him any task or assignment that would go against law or my sense of integrity."
- Ukraine's anti-corruption bureau said it uncovered a scheme to misappropriate more than $3m (£2.2m) in Ukrainian currency to pay bail for a former energy minister accused of money laundering; a senior official in Zelensky's office alleged to be involved was sacked.
- Fedorov, fired last month after reportedly falling out with the head of Ukraine's armed forces, repeated his call for wartime elections and said "democracy should not be the hostage of Putin," but stopped short of declaring a presidential bid.
- Zelensky said wartime elections would be "a huge risk" and "a tsunami for the country that will split Ukraine"; Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia's 2022 invasion and his five-year presidential term ended in May 2024.
- Fedorov criticised UK and other Western "bureaucracy and red tape" for delays in promised weapons, noting Britain has spent £16bn supplying arms since the war began, and urged direct funding of Ukrainian drone production over outdated equipment: "We don't need repairs of tanks when we no longer use tanks."
- Fedorov plans a US visit to meet Elon Musk about extending Starlink satellite connectivity into Russian airspace to assist Ukrainian strikes without Kremlin access.
Why it matters: Fedorov is no disgruntled bystander — he pioneered Ukraine's "army of drones" and modernised the defence ministry, giving his public questioning of Zelensky's corruption awareness unusual weight. With Zelensky's term expired since May 2024, martial law still suspending votes, and a senior presidential office official already sacked over the $3m scheme, the corruption probe collides with the unresolved election question to create a legitimacy challenge Zelensky cannot defer indefinitely.
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