Zelensky removed Herman Halushchenko and Svitlana Hrynchuk from the National Security and Defense Council

President Volodymyr Zelensky removed Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk from the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC).

This is stated in a message on the website of the President of Ukraine.

Next week, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine will vote on their resignations from their posts as ministers of justice and energy. Prime Minister Svyrydenko submitted a motion to this effect on Wednesday.

In addition, the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy and Housing and Communal Services supported Hrynchukʼs resignation from the post of Minister of Energy.

The “Energoatom” case

On the morning of November 10, NABU reported a large-scale operation "Midas" to expose corruption in the energy sector.

According to the bureau, “Energoatom” counterparties were forced to pay kickbacks in order to avoid blocking payments for services provided and products delivered or being stripped of supplier status. This practice was called "barrier".

Five people were detained in this case, and seven were declared suspects. These are:

• a businessman — the head of a criminal organization, who appeared in NABU records as "Carlson";
• former advisor to the Minister of Energy — "Rocket";
• Executive Director for Physical Protection and Security of JSC NNEGC “Energoatom” — "Tenor";
• four "employees" of the back office for money laundering.

NABU does not name any of the defendants, but the MP from “Voice” Yaroslav Zheleznyak claims that "Carlson" is Tymur Mindich, who is called a friend of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and one of the co-owners of the company "Studio Kvartal-95".

According to Zheleznyak, "Rocket" is the former advisor to the Minister of Energy Ihor Myronyuk, and "Tenor" is the executive director for physical protection and security of “Energoatom” Dmytro Basov.

The NABU recordings also show the Minister of Energy, a position held at the time by Herman Halushchenko, the current Minister of Justice of Ukraine. He was searched as part of the case.

NABU also claims that the participants in the scheme transferred money to the former Deputy Prime Minister. Presumably, this is Oleksiy Chernyshov. He has already been charged with illegal enrichment.

According to NABU, in the case of corruption in the energy sector, the defendants legalized approximately $100 million through an office belonging to the family of former MP and current Senator of the Russian Federation Andrey Derkach.

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