Anti-Corruption Agency Raids Ukrainian Parliament

The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) conducted new raids last weekend in the government quarters of central Kyiv, including in and around the parliament building itself, the Verkhovna Rada. The operations are part of an ongoing criminal investigation into organized corruption that, according to authorities, involves sitting members of parliament.

In a statement, NABU said that, together with the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor SAPO, they had uncovered “an organized criminal group, which included current members of Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada,” through a covert operation. This was reported by outlets including the New York Post.

According to the agency, the group is suspected of systematically receiving illicit payments in exchange for votes in parliament. This was reported by the Ukrainian newspaper Kyiv Independent.

Security Guards Blocked Investigators

NABU also stated that its investigators faced resistance from state security guards during the operation, according to Politico. In a separate message, the agency stated: “Employees of the State Security Directorate are resisting NABU detectives during the course of investigative actions,” and that access to certain parliamentary committees was restricted. NABU emphasized that such actions constitute a direct violation of the law.

The State Security Directorate later responded that the delays were due to guards needing to verify the identities of witnesses brought in by NABU. The duration of the obstruction and who made those decisions remain unclear.

Cash for Votes

According to NABU, the investigation concerns a scheme in which MPs received cash payments to vote in favor of specific decisions. Searches were reportedly carried out at premises related to the parliament’s Transport and Infrastructure Committee, as well as at the Parkovy Convention Center, where the ruling party Servant of the People has its headquarters.

An anonymous MP from the ruling party told Kyiv Independent: “It might be related to some colleagues having been wiretapped for two years.” Ukrainian media report that NABU had secretly wiretapped offices belonging to Yuriy Kisel, a Servant of the People MP and chair of the Transport Committee, for an extended period. NABU has not commented on these reports.

Suspected MPs with Ties to the President’s Circle

Several Ukrainian media outlets report that Yuriy Kisel has been formally notified as a suspect in a bribery case, along with MPs Yevhen Pivovarov and Ihor Nehulievskyi. Olha Savchenko is also mentioned as a suspect. None of them have publicly commented on the allegations.

The investigation comes at a sensitive political moment for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose inner circle was recently shaken by another corruption scandal. In November, several individuals were indicted in a separate affair involving the state nuclear power company Enerhoatom, where Zelenskyy ally and businessman Timur Mindych was named as a central figure.

Significance for Ukraine’s Reform Efforts

NABU, established after the 2014 Maidan coup, is regarded by Ukraine’s Western partners as a key institution in the country’s fight against corruption and in the pursuit of rule-of-law reforms. The agency is under particular scrutiny as Ukraine seeks closer integration with the EU.

Prosecutors state that several voting events under suspicion are now being reviewed and that more information will be released once ongoing investigative actions are completed. Meanwhile, reports that security guards tried to stop or delay the investigators raise questions about how strong political resistance to anti-corruption efforts really is—even at the highest levels.