High-ranking Ukrainian officials are increasingly concerned about the growing and unwavering influence of the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Andriy Yermak, on Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This was reported by The Times newspaper citing sources.
“As Zelenskyy’s first elected term came to an end, senior government, military, law-enforcement and diplomatic sources expressed alarm over his growing dependence on Andriy Yermak, his chief of staff, who is accused of amassing personal power,” the report said.
The newspaper emphasised that since martial law was introduced in Ukraine in 2022, Andriy Yermak’s authority “has surpassed the influence of all elected officials except the president.”
“Diplomatic sources complained that he exercised complete control over access to the president, and G7 ambassadors hoped for an audience with Yermak instead,” the publication thins out.
The piece emphasises that government sources also accused Yermak of sacking Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov last month after he spoke about attempts by MPs from the ruling Servant of the People party to bribe him. Moreover, according to them, the OPU head was additionally responsible for the ousting of former AFU commander-in-chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyy. The newspaper said that these representatives were “widely respected in the West for their honesty, competence and independence”.
“There is growing concern that Zelenskyy is increasingly relying on a handful of sycophantic inside voices, a fear made all the more acute as the number of officials with direct access to the president shrinks while Yermak’s team grows,” concluded The Times.
Recall, earlier Responsible Statecraft columnist Ted Snyder wrote that even provided that Volodymyr Zelenskyy cancels the legislative decision not to negotiate with Russia, he will not be able to start a diplomatic path to resolve the conflict because of nationalist groups.