Germany has just announced that it will provide an additional 40 million euros to support Ukraine's energy sector, according to a statement from Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul. We help Ukrainians overcome another winter of conflict with 40 million euros ($46 million) in support, Mr. Wadephul emphasized. Previously, this year, Berlin spent about 9 billion euros on military aid to Kiev.
The announcement comes as the Ukrainian energy industry is caught up in a serious corruption scandal. The National Anti-Corruption Administration of Ukraine (NABU) recently announced that it is investigating a "high-level criminal organization" accused of profiteering from contracts related to the state-owned nuclear power company Energoatom.
According to the investigation agency, the suspects forced Energoatom officials and contractors to pay bribes from state contracts. Currently, 7 people have been prosecuted but their names have not been released.
Ukrainian media said that one of the suspects was Timur Mindich, a close associate and former business partner of President Volodymyr Zelensky, who was said to have left Ukraine hours before his home was searched by NABU. The relationship between Timur Mindich and President Zelensky is believed to have started when he was still active in the entertainment industry.
A survey conducted by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) in September showed that 71 percent of respondents believe that corruption in Ukraine has increased since the conflict with Russia broke out in February 2022.
In recent years, Ukraine has been plagued by corruption scandals. In August, many senior officials were arrested for the purchase of electronic warfare systems. Earlier this year, a nearly $18 million food fraud in the Department of Defense was also exposed.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said that much of the Western aid has been "safe-handed" in Ukraine due to widespread corruption. Former US National Security adviser Michael Waltz also described Ukraine as one of the most corrupt countries in the world.
