Corruption in Ukraine hinders supply of Western weapons, – Lithuanian President
Corruption in Ukraine has a significant impact on the decisions of Western countries to supply arms. European leaders must take into account the opinions of their citizens
This was stated by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda, LRT.lt reports.
“This is an important reason. This is a very important reason. Since those countries that support Ukraine are democratic states, they should take into account the mood of their society and the opinion of their voters,” the politician said.
“Imagine that voters in a particular state see that there are very visible corruption scandals in the country to which the aid is directed. This is a huge blow to the reputation of that state,” he added.
Scandals in the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine
On January 21, Dzerkalo Tyzhnia reported that the Ministry of Defense was purchasing food for the military at prices significantly higher than those in Kyiv retail chains. Later, this scandal was called “eggs for 17 UAH”. At a meeting on January 24, the Cabinet of Ministers decided to dismiss Deputy Defense Minister Vyacheslav Shapovalov. Bohdan Khmelnytsky, director of the procurement department at the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, was also dismissed from his post: he is linked to the scandal over food for the Armed Forces.
On August 10, journalists published an investigation according to which the Ministry of Defense signed a contract with a Turkish company to supply winter clothing for the military. In fact, “camouflage jackets” were sent to Ukraine, which were re-registered as “winter air protection jackets” on the way, which were almost three times more expensive.
On August 25, it was reported that one of the owners of the Turkish company that received $30 million for the scandalous purchase of lightweight jackets for the Ukrainian military under the guise of winter jackets was the nephew of a member of the Servant of the People faction. Defense Minister Reznikov made a bet with MP Radina and journalist Tkach that he would resign from the Defense Ministry if the fact of supplying summer jackets instead of winter jackets was proven. If, in fact, 180,000 winter jackets were delivered, and not summer ones, Radina should resign her mandate, and Ukrayinska Pravda journalist Mykhailo Tkach should resign from the publication and stop working in his profession for three years.
On September 1, the court ruled that the Defense Ministry had purchased low-quality food for the military.
