Parliament approves dismissal
The Ukrainian parliament approved the dismissal of Ruslan Kravchenko as prosecutor general by 317 votes. The vote took place after Kravchenko submitted his resignation on September 7.
The resignation came as the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) investigated corruption allegations allegedly linked to officials at the Prosecutor General's Office. The parliamentary Law Enforcement Committee had unanimously recommended the dismissal one day before the vote.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also called for the decision to be approved without delay. Zelenskyy said Kravchenko had no option left other than to step down.
Details of the corruption investigation
NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office announced on September 5 that they had uncovered an alleged criminal organization reportedly led by the head of a unit at the Prosecutor General's Office. The organization's members are suspected of taking bribes and laundering money through fake call centers.
Accusations between NABU and the Prosecutor General's Office
One day before the vote, Kravchenko accused NABU Director Semen Kryvonos of falsifying official documents. The prosecutor general also said he had signed a notice of suspicion against Kryvonos.
NABU rejected the accusation and said no such notice had been officially sent to Kryvonos. The bureau described Kravchenko's statement as part of a systematic attack against Ukraine's independent anti-corruption institutions.
Kravchenko also alleged that a recent operation targeting the Prosecutor General's Office sought to gain access to case files concerning NABU and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office officials. NABU rejected this claim as well, saying that the materials in question had not been taken.
The dismissal was approved as the institutional dispute between the Prosecutor General's Office and Ukraine's anti-corruption institutions intensified.
