Further Details of Alleged High-Profile Corruption in Ukraine's Defense Sector Revealed

05 March 2019 17:43

The now—formerdeputy secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense and close ally of President Poroshenko Council Oleg Gladkovskyreceived $30,000 of illegal profitjust from buying altimeters for the Ukrainian army.

The now-former deputy secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense and close ally of President Poroshenko Council Oleg Gladkovsky received $30,000 of illegal profit just from buying altimeters for the Ukrainian army.

This emerged from Part 3 of the investigation by the Ukrainian media outlet Bihus.info (Parts 1 and 2, which came out on February 26, can be accessed here.)

The investigation, authored by investigative journalist Lesya Ivanova, reveals details of the embezzlement scheme, which involved smuggling Russian military equipment parts into Ukraine and selling them at wildly inflated prices to the state defense company Ukroboronprom.

Part 3 of the Bihus.info investigation on corruption in Ukraine's defense sector (can be watched with English subtitles).

One of the people behind the scheme was Ihor Gladkovsky, the son of the former deputy secretary of Ukraine’s National Security whom. He was fired on March 4 as a result of the journalists’ allegations.

According to Part 3 of the investigation, the state-owned arms trading company Ukrspecexport purchased several parts originating from Russia, which were used in the repair of AN-26 military aircrafts, at a price which was seven times inflated. At the time, the company was headed by Pavlo Bukin, who went on to become the head of Ukroboronprom.

The episode focuses on how and at what cost these parts entered Ukraine.

According to Bihus.info, in August 2014, Ukrspeсexport signed a contract to supply parts to the AN Service factory where the repairs were made, which amounted to around $539,000 (14.38 million hryvnia.)

The parts came to Ukraine via the United Arab Emirates, where they cleared by AN Service at the border for a price not too different from the amount stated in the contract – around $444,000 (11.85 million hryvnia.)

Ukroboronprom branded the information shared by the journalists "manipulative" as it "doesn't present the position of [their] company that we have provided to them as per their request." While Ihor Gladkovsky has filed a lawsuit against journalists Denys Bihus and Lesya Ivanova, as well as the NGO TOM 14, for damaging his business reputation. He also released a strange spoof video of the Bihus.info program where he posed as Bihus, claimed the conversations presented in the investigation were computer-generated and the entire investigation is propaganda against incumbent President Poroshenko ahead of the elections on March 31.