Zelensky should be asked about government corruption, sacked minister tells BBC
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Zelensky should be asked questions about corruption in his government, sacked defence minister tells BBC
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Figure caption:
Fedorov asked about Ukraine government corruption claims
By Dan Johnson
Ukraine correspondent
,
Reporting from
Kyiv
Published
23 August 2026, 09:02 BST
Updated 3 minutes ago
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky should be asked about corruption within his government, sacked defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov has told the BBC.
Fedorov, a popular minister who modernised the military and pioneered drone warfare, was fired last month following a reported fallout with the head of Ukraine’s armed forces.
He told the BBC a recent money laundering investigation into Ukrainian lawmakers and bankers meant Zelensky should face questions about his awareness of potential corruption in his inner circle.
However, he stressed that he had not witnessed the president engage in any corrupt activities.
"In all the time that I worked with him, not a single time have I received from him any task or assignment that would go against law or my sense of integrity," Fedorov said.
The former minister also reiterated his call for elections in Ukraine, days after releasing a video urging a wartime vote.
"Democracy should not be the hostage of Putin," he stated, but stopped short of declaring his own political ambitions.
Protests over Fedorov’s sacking had been ongoing but ended on Wednesday after his replacement was confirmed. His election appeal has largely been rebuffed.
When asked if he missed his former job, the 35-year-old answered, "No," citing the relentless stress of managing Ukraine’s war with Russia while transforming its defence ministry.
Ukraine has been under martial law since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, meaning elections are currently suspended.
Fedorov argued that it was his "moral right" to start the conversation about elections.
"We should not be afraid of discussing it. That’s what democracy is all about. If I cannot share my ideas and be open about them with my own society, then what are we fighting for?"
In his initial video statement, Fedorov had argued that "people cannot endlessly live in a state where they do not understand why certain decisions are made."
He avoided direct criticism of Zelensky and declined to say if he supported the president’s re-election.
Zelensky recently stated that he believed wartime elections would be too dangerous for Ukraine, saying:
"I believe that in a war like this, elections as such are a huge risk. Elections right now are a tsunami for the country that will split Ukraine."
Experts have cited numerous obstacles to holding such a vote, including how soldiers, millions of Ukrainian refugees, and people from occupied territories would participate, as well as the risk of disinformation from Russia.
Fedorov’s video highlighting political corruption came the day before a money laundering investigation was announced targeting lawmakers and bankers.
Ukraine’s anti-corruption bureau stated it had frozen assets belonging to 19 individuals, including current and former lawmakers, as part of a probe into "systematic money laundering."
