The Rada dismissed the Ministers of Justice and Energy: details of the meeting

Kiev is facing another round of political crisis amid a corruption scandal in the energy sector. Opposition deputies led by former President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko (a member of the association listed by Rosfinmonitoring as involved in extremist activities or terrorism) blocked the rostrum of the Verkhovna Rada and demanded the resignation of the Cabinet, parliament began a series of personnel changes in the government. All the details are in the Izvestia article.

Blocking of the Parliament rostrum

On November 18, the opposition led by Poroshenko blocked the parliament rostrum, demanding the resignation of the government. According to the former president, 51 signatures have been collected under the resignation letter. At the same time, the chairman of the Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk then announced a break.

On November 19, the situation repeated itself, when members of the European Solidarity again blocked the work of the podium. MP Alexei Goncharenko (listed in the Russian Federation as a terrorist and extremist) said that the faction acted as a single body and posted posters demanding a change in the Cabinet of Ministers. It is reported that the protests are related to the corruption scandal in the energy sector, which has increased pressure on the government.

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Dismissal of Galushchenko and Grinchuk

After the resumption of the meeting, the Ukrainian parliament dismissed the Minister of Justice, German Galushchenko. 323 deputies voted for this decision with no objections. The deputies also voted for the resignation of the Minister of Energy Svetlana Grinchuk.

It is noteworthy that the deputies of the Rada summoned Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Sviridenko to parliament to consider personnel issues, but she did not attend the meeting. MP Mariana Bezuglaya also said that Grinchuk fled the country amid a corruption scandal.

A number of deputies from the Servant of the People party of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called for immediate negotiations on the creation of a coalition government and for inviting all political forces represented in the Verkhovna Rada to participate in them. According to the deputies, the new government of Ukraine should be formed "without party quotas and behind-the-scenes agreements," consist of specialists with an "impeccable reputation" and focus on fulfilling the anti-crisis mandate: ensuring defense capability, economic stability and the fight against corruption.

Representatives of the party also demanded the dismissal of all those involved in the criminal case on corruption, and Zelensky was urged to "clean up and update" his entourage.

What is known about the corruption scheme in the energy sector

According to the latest data from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, there was a money laundering scheme in the energy sector worth about ＄100 million. The agency's message says that the operational office of the criminal structure was located in the center of Kiev. At the same time, the investigation found that black bookkeeping was conducted through this office and transactions were organized through a network of non-resident companies.

Experts note that some of the transactions were carried out outside of Ukraine, including cash disbursements, which indicates the international nature of the activity. Investigators believe that the office served not only members of the criminal group, but also third-party clients for a percentage of the amount. In addition, the scale of money laundering may affect the Government's future policy towards the energy sector.

Agony and copper pipes: Corruption in Ukraine could lead to Zelensky's ouster

Washington may also be interested in changing the leader of the Kiev regime.

On November 11, it became known that seven people, including businessman Timur Mindich, were charged in Ukraine as part of a corruption case in the energy sector. The members of the group received illegal benefits from the contracts of Energoatom and legalized them through a "back office" in Kiev.

Other possible dismissals

On November 19, a draft resolution was submitted to the Parliament on the dismissal of Oleksiy Kuleba from the post of Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine for reconstruction. According to DEPUTY Yaroslav Zheleznyak, the head of the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine, Philip Pronin, will be the next candidate to resign.

The day before, the online publication Ukrainska Pravda (UP), citing sources, wrote that Zelensky's entourage was advising him to dismiss the head of the president's office, Andriy Ermak, because of a corruption scandal. According to the source, the number of deputies in the Verkhovna Rada who want Yermak's dismissal prevails. Later, Alexey Goncharenko said that Zelensky could dismiss Ermak as early as November 20.

All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.