A major financial audit was announced Wednesday of state procurement contracts in Energoatom and other state-owned companies, primarily from the energy sector.
The government also stopped the competition Thursday for the post running Ukraine’s state gas transportation system, as one of the finalists was featured on NABU wiretaps as a potential suspect in Mindich’s alleged schemes. In addition to that, the authorities instructed supervisory councils to conduct audits of all state strategic enterprises, primarily in the energy sector.
Ukrainian watchdogs, however, say that further steps will be required to fully restore trust.
A major new reform push could turn the reputational fiasco into an opportunity to show that Ukraine indeed wants to abolish corruption permanently, said Mykhailo Zhernakov, executive director of the Dejure Foundation, a judicial reform watchdog based in Kyiv.
“I do think the Ukrainian government has all the powers to show partners that, OK, we stumbled, but instead of offering pinpoint solutions, we are launching systematic changes,” Zhernakov said.
Late Friday, Yermak posted on Telegram that he’d met U.S. Charge D’Affairs in Ukraine Julie Davis and talked about the issues.
“We discussed the fight against corruption,” he said. “We expressed our shared belief that investigations into recent high-profile cases should be thorough, professional, and impartial, and should lead to real results, rather than being used to destabilize the situation in Ukraine in favor of Russia’s plans.”
This article has been updated.