Zelenskiy Asks Lawmakers for Swift Removal of Ukraine’s Prosecutor General

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Ukrainian lawmakers on Monday to swiftly support the removal of Ukraine’s prosecutor general as tensions ​escalated over a series of high-profile anti-corruption investigations.
Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko resigned his ‌post last week after a corruption investigation reached his office. He was not charged with a crime or named a suspect in any investigation, but anti-corruption authorities had accused a subordinate of helping ​run a fraud ring.
Relations between Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdogs and other law-enforcement agencies ​have faced continuous strain over the past year, and Kravchenko said on ⁠Monday that he had signed a “suspicion notice” against the head of the National Anti-Corruption ​Bureau (NABU), one of the bodies investigating his office.
He alleged that NABU head Semen Kryvonos ​has forged official documents to obtain “an unlawful benefit on an exceptionally large scale” and accused him of a fictional adoption to “evade legal liability in court”.
NABU and SAPO, the other anti-graft agency involved in ​the probe that led to the prosecutor general’s resignation, said that Kravchenko’s statement was ​another step in a “systematic attack on independent anti-corruption bodies.” They denied the allegations in Kravchenko’s statement ‌and ⁠said that Kryvonos had not been formally charged.
Under Ukrainian law, Zelenskiy needs to submit a formal request for parliament to accept Kravchenko’s resignation. Parliament was expected to hold a vote on Tuesday, several lawmakers said.
“There is only one path for this Prosecutor General: ​removal from office. That ​is what I ⁠told him,” Zelenskiy said on the Telegram app.
Kravchenko had been criticised by opponents for allegedly participating in an attempt to roll back ​the independence of NABU and SAPO last year – accusations he ​has denied.
The ⁠latest escalation in the power struggle comes at a time when Ukraine is struggling to meet its obligations on some of the anti-corruption reforms that are required to unlock vital ⁠funding from ​its international partners.