Enlarge image
Mortar shells lie on a field (symbolic image)
Photo:
Brennan Linsley/AP
The Ukrainian security service SBU says it has uncovered a corruption scheme in the purchase of weapons by the Ukrainian military worth around $40 million. "According to the investigation, former and current high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Defense and heads of subsidiaries are involved in the embezzlement," said the SBU.
An investigation has "exposed Defense Ministry officials and managers of the arms supplier Lviv Arsenal." The embezzlement involves the purchase of 100,000 mortar shells for the military, the statement says.
Investigations against five people
According to the SBU, a contract with Lviv Arsenal to purchase the grenades was concluded in August 2022, six months after the start of the war. Payment was made in advance, with some funds being transferred abroad.
However, according to the statement, weapons were never delivered. “Suspicion reports” – the first stage of a Ukrainian court case – were issued against five people in both the ministry and the arms supplier. A suspect was arrested while trying to cross the Ukrainian border. A massive procurement fraud has also been confirmed by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly announced a rigorous fight against corruption and misappropriation of funds in the state apparatus. Proof of success in this fight is also considered a prerequisite for Ukraine's membership in the European Union.
The EU officially decided to start accession negotiations in December. Critics point out that the country is one of the most corrupt states in Europe. The US magazine "Time" recently anonymously quoted a high-ranking official in Kiev as saying that theft in the country was happening "as if there was no tomorrow."
svs/Reuters