The Ukrainian Prosecutor’s Office has opened a criminal investigation against former deputy Yuri Aristov, who resigned from his position on Tuesday, for having lied to be able to leave the country amid martial law, and go on vacation to the Maldives islands. Deputy Chairman of Parliament’s National Security, Defense and Intelligence Committee since December 2022, Aristov was a member of President Volodimir Zelensky’s Servant of the People party, which has announced his suspension.
Ukrainian martial law prohibits all males of military age from leaving the country without express authorization to do so. And since January 2023, political officials and public officials have limited their departures from the country to official missions.
Yuri Aristov left Ukraine this July for a three-day working visit to Lithuania. From there, he obtained a fraudulent medical discharge from a private clinic in Kyiv and traveled to the Maldives with his wife and children to spend a few days at the Waldorf Astoria Maldives hotel, located on the private island of Ithaafushi. The intelligence services (SBU) searched Aristov’s home and found his passport, with Maldivian stamps.
The circumstance occurs that Aristov, before being elected deputy, had been a partner of Zelenski in a business selling fish and shellfish.
In his nightly address to the nation on Tuesday, Zelensky implicitly referred to the case, saying he will not tolerate corruption or “betrayal of the principles of the state” and “the interests of society” while the country it is struggling to find the means to defend itself against the Russian invasion. The president mentioned a parliamentarian accused of collaborating with Russia and the former recruitment commissioner for the Odessa region, Yevhén Borísov, arrested on Monday after finding evidence of undue enrichment, since he owns, through his relatives, properties in Spain (Marbella , specifically) worth almost five million euros, in addition to several luxury cars. “Some got money at the military enlistment and registration office,” Zelensky said.
Last January, the Defense Minister, Olexí Réznikov, was questioned about a corruption case discovered by the press in relation to the purchase of food for the army at inflated prices. Reznikov, who has remained in office, said it was a campaign against him.
Ukraine’s long-standing reputation as one of the most corrupt countries in Europe worries donors in the current war and, according to a Transparency International survey, makes Ukrainians fear such corruption will be reproduced when it comes time to rebuild the country. This is the case between 73% of the population and 80% of those who own a business, while 68% and 73%, respectively, fear “the lack of control and the embezzlement of public funds.”
Under pressure from European and American allies, Zelenski has promoted changes in the anti-corruption office and in the corresponding department of the Prosecutor’s Office. The latter, in July 2022. At that time it was learned that the Deputy Attorney General, Olexí Simonenko, had gone on vacation to Spain. The travel regulations – which are regulated by the National Security Council – did not yet exist, but he was asked to resign.
