Employees from a Ukrainian arms company collaborated with defense ministry officials to misappropriate nearly $40 million intended for the purchase of 100,000 mortar shells for the conflict with Russia, according to Ukraine’s security service.
This development comes as Kyiv aims to tackle corruption to expedite its EU and NATO membership, as both organizations have insisted on extensive anti-graft reforms before admitting Ukraine.
The Ukrainian security service, SBU, reported on Sunday, January 28, that five individuals have been charged, with one person detained while attempting to cross the Ukrainian border. If convicted, the officials could face up to 12 years in prison.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, elected on an anti-corruption platform in 2019, has been emphasizing efforts to combat corruption, and recent dismissals of top officials are portrayed as part of this initiative.
The SBU’s investigation, which began in August 2022, revealed that officials signed a contract for artillery shells worth $39.6 million with the arms firm Lviv Arsenal. After receiving payment, Lviv Arsenal employees were supposed to transfer the funds to a foreign-registered business for ammunition delivery. However, the goods were never supplied, and the funds were diverted to various accounts in Ukraine and the Balkans, investigators disclosed. Ukraine’s prosecutor general confirmed that the seized funds would be returned to the country’s defense budget.
