Zelenskyy targets corruption in Security Service following $320,000 bribe case

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on his Telegram channel that significant personnel changes and detentions have taken place within the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).

According to Zelenskyy, he reviewed reports from the SBU and instructed its head, Yevhen Khmara, and his deputy, Oleksandr Poklad, to carry out a thorough “purification” of the service, targeting employees whose interests are not aligned with the Ukrainian state. He noted that tangible results have already been achieved and that detentions corresponding to this effort were conducted on the same day.

The president stressed the importance of fair judicial processes and made it clear that anyone holding a public office must serve exclusively the interests of Ukraine. “There will be no other way,” Zelenskyy said.

Earlier reports confirmed the detention of two high-ranking SBU officers on bribery charges. These include Colonel Andriy Ukrayintsev, who commanded logistics for the Air Force, and Colonel Volodymyr Kompanychenko, head of the SBU office in Zhytomyr Oblast. Both are suspected of receiving a bribe totalling $320,000.

By Tamilla Hasanova