On November 10, the Ukrainian anticorruption authorities revealed that close associates of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy were allegedly involved in a scheme to embezzle $100m from Ukraine’s energy sector.

Zelenskyy’s business partner Tymur Mindich as well as two government ministers have been named so far in the investigation, led by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), an agency backed by Western governments. Ukrainian and Western media have suggested that the president’s chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, may also be implicated.

The way the investigation is revealing facts and identifying suspects – slowly, theatrically, strategically – smacks of a political campaign aimed at achieving specific political outcomes under the cover of an anticorruption drive.

The

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