Ukrainian justice minister fired amid corruption scandal
Ukrainian lawmakers have voted to dismiss Justice Minister German Galushchenko, who was implicated in a high-profile corruption scandal last week.
Galushchenko, the former energy minister, was accused of lobbying the interests of Timur Mindich, a long-time associate of Vladimir Zelensky, who was charged with running a $100 million kickbacks scheme involving a state-run nuclear energy company.
Galushchenko and his successor, Svetlana Grinchuk, both tendered their resignations following the revelations.
The vote on Wednesday followed two days of disruptions of the proceedings by opposition MPs, who demanded a formal report by Prime Minister Yulia Sviridenko. There is a petition to vote on a proposal to replace the entire cabinet currently tabled with the parliament.
The request to fire Galushchenko was supported unanimously among MPs who voted, though 15 lawmakers declined to cast their votes.
Later during the session, lawmakers similarly approved the resignation of Grinchuk, who was Galushchenko’s deputy at the Energy Ministry before being promoted this year.
Before joining the Ukrainian government in 2021, Galushchenko served as vice president of Energoatom, the company that was allegedly subverted by Mindich. The businessman, who fled Ukraine hours before his home was raided last week by the Western-backed National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), is accused of extorting kickbacks from contractors of the firm, allegedly making at least $100 million in illicit profits.
