Ukraine president cites connivance with Russia by people within their depts; sacked men include his childhood friend and former business partner
A child jumps on a trampoline against the backdrop of destroyed buildings in Borodyanka. Pic/AFP
As Russian troops pressed their offensive in Ukraine’s east, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy fired his state security chief and prosecutor general on Sunday, citing hundreds of criminal proceedings into treason and collaboration by people within their departments and other law enforcement agencies.
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“In particular, more than 60 employees of the prosecutor’s office and the SBU (state security service) have remained in the occupied territory and work against our state,” Zelenskyy said.
“Such an array of crimes against the foundations of the state’s national security, and the links recorded between Ukrainian security forces and Russian special services raise very serious questions about their respective leaders,” he said in his nightly video address to the nation.
Zelenskyy dismissed Ivan Bakanov, a childhood friend and former business partner whom he had appointed to head the SBU. Bakanov had come under growing criticism over security breaches since the war began; Politico last month cited several unidentified Ukrainian and Western sources saying Zelenskyy was looking to replace him. He also dismissed Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova.
Russian scribe detained
A Russian journalist who in March interrupted a live TV broadcast to denounce the war on Ukraine has been arrested near her house in Moscow, according to media reports. Her lawyer on Sunday said that the Russian police detained Marina Ovsyannikova.
Income down, Russians pick cheaper food
Russians shoppers are switching to cheaper food items driven by a drop in real disposable income, the country’s leading food retailer X5 Group said on Monday, as high inflation crimps purchasing power. Though a stronger rouble and a drop in consumer demand have helped Russia rein in inflation, which soared to 20-year highs in annual terms after Moscow attacked Ukraine on February 24, consumer prices are still elevated.
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