Top Ukrainian officials quit in anti-corruption drive

Ukrainian investigative journalists have accused Kyrylo Tymoshenko (L) of living a lavish wartime lifestyle

Several senior Ukrainian officials have resigned as President Volodymyr Zelensky begins a shake-up of personnel across his government.

A top adviser, four deputy ministers and five regional governors left their posts on Tuesday.

Their departures come as Ukraine launches a broad anti-corruption drive.

Recently, authorities have seen bribery claims, reports of officials buying food at inflated prices and one figure accused of living a lavish lifestyle.

Senior aide Mykhailo Podolyak said Mr Zelensky was responding to a "key public demand" that justice should apply to everyone.

The president has already banned state officials from leaving the country unless on authorised business.

The first to resign on Tuesday was Kyrylo Tymoshenko, the president's deputy head of office, who oversaw regional policy and had earlier worked on Mr Zelensky's election campaign.

After Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine last February he became a frequent spokesperson for the government.

He was accused by Ukrainian investigative journalists of using several expensive sports cars throughout the war - though denies any wrongdoing.

In a Telegram post, he thanked Mr Zelensky for "the opportunity to do good deeds every day and every minute".

Deputy Defence Minister Vyacheslav Shapovalov also resigned, following reports he oversaw the purchase of military food supplies at inflated prices from a relatively unknown firm. The department called this a "technical mistake" and claimed no money had changed hands.

The defence minister himself - Oleksii Reznikov - has been under scrutiny for the same reason.

A host of other top officials were dismissed on Tuesday, including:

• Deputy Prosecutor General Oleskiy Symonenko

• Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories Ivan Lukerya

• Deputy Minister for Development of Communities and Territories Vyacheslav Negoda

• Deputy Minister for Social Policy Vitaliy Muzychenko

• And the regional governors of Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, Sumy and Kherson

Ukraine has a history of corruption and in 2021 Transparency International ranked the country at 122 out of 180 countries in its ranking of corrupt states.

A crackdown is one of the EU's key demands if the country is to advance its application to join the bloc.

In an address on Sunday, Mr Zelensky promised there would be "no return to what used to be in the past, to the way various people close to state institutions" used to live.

His comments followed the arrest of Ukraine's Deputy Infrastructure Minister Vasyl Lozinskyi on Saturday on suspicion of accepting a bribe worth over $350,000 (£285,000) over the supply of electricity generators. He has denied the charges.

David Arakhamia, the head of Mr Zelensky's Servant of the People party, has said that corrupt officials could face jail.

"Officials at all levels have been constantly warned through official and unofficial channels: focus on the war, help the victims, reduce bureaucracy and stop doing dubious business.

"Many of them have actually listened, but some, unfortunately, did not," he said in a Telegram statement.

"If it doesn't work in a civilised way, it will be done according to the laws of wartime. This applies both to recent purchases of generators and to fresh scandals in the ministry of defence."

While there have been anti-corruption reforms in recent years, the stakes are high for Kyiv - which is receiving billions of dollars worth of financial aid from Western allies.