Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand at the G7 Foreign Ministers' Meeting in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., on Wednesday.Nick Iwanyshyn/The Canadian Press
An unfolding corruption scandal in Ukraine will not deter Canada from continuing its support for the war-torn country, but Ottawa expects Kyiv to implement reforms to fight graft, Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said on Thursday.
Anti-corruption authorities said this week that they had detained five people and identified two others suspected of involvement in an alleged plot to control procurement at the country’s nuclear agency, Energoatom, and other state enterprises.
The allegations prompted Ukraine’s justice and energy ministers to quit, and have sparked questions about what the country’s highest officials knew of the alleged conspiracy.
It is fast becoming one of the most significant crises for Kyiv since Moscow’s full-scale invasion, with media reports implicating a close associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky. The alleged US$100-million scheme could also hand opponents of Western aid to Ukraine a rationale for cutting assistance after almost four years of war.
Ottawa has provided nearly $22-billion in various forms of aid to Ukraine since 2022.
Ms. Anand said in a statement that Canada has offered to help Ukraine tighten oversight and accountability in government to prevent such corruption.
“Canada is a long-time supporter of Ukraine’s reform efforts. Continued reform is essential for transparency, accountability and good governance, which are all critical for Ukraine’s long-term prosperity,” she said.
Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha and Ms. Anand during the G7 meeting.Carlos Osorio/Reuters
She noted that Mr. Zelensky has addressed these developments and expressed his support for the investigation.
Ms. Anand said she told Ukrainian Foreign Affairs Minister Andrii Sybiha, who attended a G7 meeting in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., this week, that Canada “continues to offer support to Ukraine in terms of governance reforms.”
She said Canadians should trust that Ottawa carefully scrutinizes foreign aid to identify risks.
“I want to assure Canadians that all of our international assistance projects undergo a rigorous assessment before the agreement is signed. This allows us to identify any potential fiduciary risks, to put in place robust risk-management measures and to monitor compliance regularly,” Ms. Anand said.
European Union officials also warned Ukraine on Thursday that it must keep cracking down on graft, while offering assurances that aid will continue to flow.
The revelations this week occurred as Russia’s renewed attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure caused rolling blackouts ahead of winter.
Ukrainian officials are scrambling for European funds to manage mounting energy shortages as Moscow targets critical infrastructure and natural-gas production to try to sink public morale. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s outnumbered forces are retreating under relentless assaults in some areas.
A Kyiv court has begun hearing evidence from anti-corruption watchdogs whose 15-month investigation included 1,000 hours of wiretaps.
Tymur Mindich, a co-owner of Mr. Zelensky’s Kvartal 95 media production company, is the alleged conspiracy’s suspected mastermind. His whereabouts are unknown.
The country has been plagued by corruption since gaining independence, and Mr. Zelensky was elected on a mandate to eliminate graft. Military-procurement scandals led to the ouster of Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov in 2023.
Last summer. Mr. Zelensky attempted to curtail Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdogs. He backtracked after widespread street protests in Ukraine and pressure from the European Union, which has pushed the country to address entrenched corruption.
The timing of this crisis couldn’t be much worse.
“Internally, this scandal will be used to undermine unity and stability within the country. Externally, our enemies will use it as an argument to stop aid to Ukraine,” said Oleksandr Merezhko, a legislator with Mr. Zelensky’s party.
“It looks really bad in the eyes of our European and American partners. While Russians destroy our power grid and people have to endure blackouts, someone at the top was stealing money during the war.”
The International Monetary Fund will soon begin a staff mission to Ukraine to discuss its financing needs and a potential new lending program, spokesperson Julie Kozack said Thursday, underscoring the need for continued anti-corruption efforts.
Ukraine is in talks with the IMF about a new four-year program that would replace the current four-year US$15.5-billion program. Kyiv has already received US$10.6-billion of that amount.
Ms. Kozack told reporters at a regular briefing that the IMF staff mission would centre on policies to safeguard Ukraine’s macroeconomic stability and ensure its debt sustainability, with a focus that includes strengthening governance and combatting corruption.
“We’ve been saying for some time that Ukraine needs a robust anti-corruption architecture to level the playing field, safeguard public resources, improve the business climate and attract investment,” Ms. Kozack said, calling efforts to fight corruption a central requirement for Ukraine’s donors.
With reports from the Associated Press and Reuters