Zelenskyy’s lead negotiator was wooing the US in Geneva, while a massive corruption probe in Kyiv just blew up his entire negotiation strategy

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s powerful chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, has officially resigned after Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies conducted searches at his apartment, according to The Guardian. This is awful timing, especially since Yermak had been fronting high-stakes negotiations in Geneva with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, trying to carefully woo the White House with a 19-point counterproposal.

Yermak’s departure was announced by President Zelenskyy in a social media video. While the president praised his chief negotiator, he made it clear that “there should be no reason to be distracted by anything other than the defence of Ukraine.” He confirmed that Yermak had submitted his resignation and that the presidential office would be “reorganised” before a successor is found starting Saturday.

“I am grateful to Andriy for always representing Ukraine’s position in the negotiation track exactly as it should be. It has always been a patriotic position,” Zelenskyy stated, adding that he wanted to stop all “rumors or speculation” surrounding the matter.

Yermak wasn’t just some minor staffer, he was considered the second most powerful figure in Ukraine

Yermak, a former intellectual property lawyer and film producer, became Zelenskyy’s chief of staff in 2020. During the early days of the invasion, he became an indispensable aide, routinely consulted on foreign policy, domestic affairs, and appointments. The president’s office, which Yermak led, was where all of Zelenskyy’s key political affairs were channeled.

The corruption scandal that triggered this political earthquake first surfaced earlier this month. After days of damaging revelations, it briefly dropped off the news agenda when President Trump unexpectedly released his own pro-Russian 28-point peace plan. However, Friday’s developments thrust the entire scandal right back into the spotlight.

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (Nabu) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (Sapo) confirmed they were “conducting investigative actions at the head of the office of the president of Ukraine.” Journalists filmed roughly 10 investigators entering Kyiv’s government quarter, confirming the investigation was widening. Yermak himself released a short statement acknowledging the searches, adding that the investigators faced “no obstacles” and were given “full access” to his apartment.

At the heart of this investigation is a high-level criminal scheme involving Energoatom, the state-owned nuclear power generator and Ukraine’s most important energy supplier. Investigators said they uncovered a scheme where insiders allegedly received kickbacks of 10 to 15% from the company’s commercial partners.

The alleged organizer of this massive scheme is Tymur Mindich, an old friend and business partner of President Zelenskyy from his time running the Kvartal 95 TV production company. Another high-profile suspect is Oleksiy Chernyshov, a former deputy prime minister. He was formally charged by Nabu for allegedly receiving a staggering $1.2 billion from participants in the scheme.

The investigation is incredibly detailed, relying on more than 1,000 hours of secretly recorded conversations released to the media. In one particularly shocking recording, a suspect lamented that it was a “pity” to build defense structures to protect power stations from Russian attacks, arguing the money could be stolen instead.