Six Ukrainian deputy defense ministers were fired Monday as allegations of corruption are on the rise. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy fired the defense ministers as part of an anti-corruption response plan.
During the course of the Ukraine and Russia war, there have been numerous allegations of corruption aimed at the Ukrainian government. These allegations of corruption stem from several sources, with the main issue being aid accountability.
Since the start of the war in Ukraine, several countries have donated to the Ukrainian military to boost their defenses. The United States is one of the countries that has chosen to back the Ukrainian war efforts.
The Biden administration recently pledged $25 billion to the Ukrainian military. The new funds are in addition to the previously donated amounts totaling around $75 billion. The donation to the foreign military has been met with American citizen opposition.
One point of opposition is how the money is actually being spent. In the past year, there have been sightings of Ukrainian defense ministers driving expensive cars, spending large amounts of money, and making expensive renovations to their homes.
This over-spending has led to many government officials from contributing countries to ask how the money is being used. There have been calls for proof of aid spending and accountability.
Zelenskyy was elected on an anti-corruption platform. In an effort to show he is still standing on that platform, he has launched corruption investigations and fired several members of his administration.
These firings are not stopping or even stemming the corruption allegations. In fact, the spending is still in question.
As these corruption-related allegations grow, Zelenskyy continues to ask for increasing amounts of funding and aid for Ukraine’s military. These ongoing requests for large amounts of funding have led to questions about how the funds are being spent.
In a recent article by U.S. journalist Seymour Hersh, the allegations of financial corruption and misuse were discussed. Hersh stated in his article that not only has Zelenskyy embezzled funds, but the Biden administration is part of the corruption.
Hersh also discusses how this corruption is not new. His article goes into detail about how the CIA has known about these corrupt officials, including the six recently fired by Zelensky.
The American citizens are becoming increasingly angry with the amount of money the Biden administration is sending to Ukraine while ignoring the U.S. needs. This irritation will only grow with the increased funding that Biden is offering the war-torn country.
