Ukraine says top defense official embezzled $40M

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian police have arrested a senior Defense Ministry official on suspicions that he embezzled nearly $40 million as part of a fraudulent purchase of artillery shells for Ukraine’s military.

Ukrainian authorities have been working to clean up the ministry since reports of graft and financial mismanagement led to the removal in September of the minister at the time. Ukraine’s security service announced the arrest of the senior official, whose name was not released, Friday.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine has also made tackling corruption one of his key wartime goals, not only to reassure Ukraine’s Western allies that their billions of dollars in aid are not being siphoned off, but also to ensure an efficient allocation of resources as the country’s military runs short on weapons and ammunition in its fight to fend off Russia’s forces.

Ukrainian soldiers and commanders have said in recent days that a dearth of artillery shells has led them to scale back some military operations and has weakened Ukraine’s ability to withstand relentless Russian attacks.

In the case announced Friday, Ukrainian prosecutors said the Defense Ministry official had developed a system to buy artillery shells at inflated prices.

In December 2022, they said, the official signed an agreement with a manufacturer for the purchase of artillery shells. The contract was later abandoned when a procurement agency recently created by the ministry struck a new deal with the same manufacturer that reduced costs by 30% and shortened delivery time by eliminating a foreign intermediary.