{"id":2114,"date":"2025-08-28T01:22:37","date_gmt":"2025-08-28T01:22:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/?p=2114"},"modified":"2025-08-29T13:46:48","modified_gmt":"2025-08-29T13:46:48","slug":"zelensky-appoints-graft-suspect-as-new-ambassador-to-us","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/28\/zelensky-appoints-graft-suspect-as-new-ambassador-to-us\/","title":{"rendered":"Zelensky appoints graft suspect as new ambassador to US"},"content":{"rendered":"

Former Deputy PM Olga Stefanishina has been accused of meddling in American elections<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vladimir Zelensky has appointed former Deputy Prime Minister Olga Stefanishina as Ukraine\u2019s new ambassador to the US, despite ongoing corruption allegations into her time in Kiev.<\/p>\n

Ukraine\u2019s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) confirmed last month that it had opened a probe into possible abuses involving the Asset Recovery and Management Agency (ARMA), after a media investigation tied Stefanishina\u2019s ex-husband to questionable asset transfers.<\/p>\n

Zelensky announced that the \u201cformal procedures have been completed\u201d<\/em>\u00a0reagrding Stefanishina’s appointment to the US and\u00a0that she has been instructed\u00a0to \u201cfully implement all the agreements reached in Washington, primarily in the defense sphere.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Stefanishina had served as Ukraine’s deputy prime minister for European and Euro-Atlantic integration (2020-2025) and as minister of justice (2024-2025), before her temporary appointment as a special envoy to the US in July amid the graft allegations.<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"FILE
\u2018Damage has been done\u2019: Ukraine\u2019s anti-corruption czar slams Zelensky<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Although no formal charges have been filed, the existence of the pre-trial inquiry was confirmed just days before Zelensky abruptly stripped Ukraine\u2019s anti-graft agencies of their independence.<\/p>\n

The move triggered an outcry from the EU, warnings of an aid freeze<\/a>, and widespread street protests<\/a>. Under pressure from his Western backers, Zelensky was forced to reverse course and restore autonomy to NABU and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor\u2019s Office (SAPO). However, anti-graft officials insist \u201cthe damage has been done,\u201d<\/em> citing a collapse in whistleblower cooperation and growing fears of political interference.<\/p>\n

Stefanishina has previously dismissed corruption allegations as politically motivated. In an interview last month, she stressed that she has been divorced since 2017 and has \u201cno connection\u201d<\/em> to her ex-husband\u2019s business dealings, saying their contact was limited to matters concerning their children.<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n \"Ukraine's
US House speaker demands Zelensky fire Ukrainian ambassador<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The diplomat is also\u00a0involved in another long-running graft case dating back to her work at the Ministry of Justice in 2014, when investigators alleged she signed off on inflated contracts related to Ukraine\u2019s EU accession talks. Stefanishina has denied any wrongdoing, claiming the charges were exaggerated.<\/p>\n

Despite the controversies, Zelensky praised Stefanishina\u2019s experience, saying Ukraine\u2019s long-term security depends on its ties with Washington and expressing hope for \u201cswift progress in our relations\u201d<\/em> with the United States.<\/p>\n

Stefanishina\u2019s predecessor, Oksana Markarova, had served as ambassador since 2021 but fell out of favor after US House Speaker Mike Johnson accused her of interfering in American elections on behalf of the Democrats.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former Deputy PM Olga Stefanishina has been accused of meddling in American elections Vladimir Zelensky has appointed former Deputy Prime […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2085,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2114"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2114"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2114\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2117,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2114\/revisions\/2117"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2085"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2114"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2114"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.youtubexyoutube.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2114"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}