Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office and a key figure in Kyiv’s wartime leadership, resigned Friday following searches of his residence by Ukraine’s top anti-corruption agencies.
Yermak’s apartment inside the presidential compound in central Kyiv was searched earlier the same day by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. The agencies are conducting a wide-ranging investigation into a $100-million corruption scandal in Ukraine’s energy sector, although it is not clear whether Yermak’s case is related. He had not been served a notice of suspicion, according to his spokesperson Oleksii Tkachuk.
“The investigators are facing no obstacles,” Yermak wrote on the messaging app Telegram, adding that his legal team was present and that he was cooperating fully with the inquiry.
Yermak has played a central role in Ukraine’s foreign policy and war diplomacy, including being the country’s lead negotiator in talks with Russia and the United States. His resignation introduces potential uncertainty at a particularly sensitive time, as Ukraine faces mounting pressure from Washington to move toward a negotiated settlement with Moscow.
French news outlet France 24 reported that two of Yermak’s former deputies, Oleh Tatarov and Rostyslav Shurma, resigned in 2024 after being investigated for financial wrongdoing. A third, Andriy Smyrnov, was also investigated for bribery but remains in government.
Tymur Mindich, a former business associate of Zelensky, is suspected to be the architect of the energy sector corruption plot. Mindich has reportedly fled Ukraine. Meanwhile, two cabinet ministers have stepped down amid the scandal.
Although Yermak has not been accused of wrongdoing, his resignation followed growing political pressure within Zelensky’s own Servant of the People party. Some senior lawmakers had demanded his departure to preserve public trust. Others warned that a failure to dismiss him could lead to a party split, threatening the president’s majority in parliament. Zelensky initially resisted those calls.
The European Commission said it is watching the developments closely. “The searches showed that Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies were working,” Guillaume Mercier, a Commission spokesperson, told Radio Svoboda. “Fighting corruption is central to the country’s European Union accession.”
Yermak first met Zelensky over 15 years ago when he was a lawyer entering television production and Zelensky was a popular comedian. He became a close advisor after Zelensky’s 2019 election victory and was appointed chief of staff in 2020. His political influence has been immense, with officials describing him as a gatekeeper who oversaw key government appointments, ministers, and foreign policy.
His departure marks one of the most significant personnel changes in Zelensky’s administration amid the ongoing war and Ukraine’s EU membership bid.
