KYIV (Realist English). Former head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Andriy Yermak has announced that he intends to join frontline military service following his resignation, which came amid an escalating corruption investigation and searches by Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) at his home.
Speaking to the New York Post, Yermak called the allegations and the high-profile raid an orchestrated attempt to destroy his reputation. “I am going to the front and I am ready for any reprisals. I am an honest and decent man,” he said, adding that he had been in Kyiv since 24 February 2022 and felt his “dignity was not protected.”
“I don’t want to create problems for Zelensky — I am going to the front,” Yermak added, saying he was disgusted by the “filth poured” on him and even more by what he described as the silence of those who know the truth.
After the interview, the former official stopped responding to calls from journalists. He did not specify which unit he plans to join or when he intends to deploy to the front line.
Ukrainian media link the searches at Yermak’s residence to NABU’s “Midas” case — a probe into an alleged corruption network in the energy sector. Investigators are examining possible ties between senior government officials and the “Dynastia” cooperative, including potential links to Yermak.
His resignation has triggered a reshuffle of Ukraine’s negotiating team just days before its delegation is scheduled to travel to the United States for talks with President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, focused on the emerging “peace plan.”
According to President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine will now be represented by Chief of the General Staff Andriy Hnatov, officials from the Foreign Ministry and intelligence services, and National Security and Defense Council secretary Rustem Umerov.