Corruption in the Ukrainian Armed Forces has not disappeared, as new details of an uncovered corruption case signal.
In September 2023, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), in close cooperation with the Ukrainian police conducted a search of the home of a high-ranking Ukrainian military officer.
According to the accusations, colonel Kozlovsky and his family had committed fraud in the purchasing of rations for the Ukrainian military. It was established that Kozlovsky and his family set up several companies through which they supplied food to the military at inflated prices and then pocketed the difference.
After six moths, the investigation has entered a new phase. Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), acting in cooperation with the Prosecutor General’s Office, have brought to light the details of a case of skimming perpetrated by the former head of the Central Food Supply Department of the Logistics Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
According to the investigation, Kozlovsky acquired unexplained assets worth roughly US$1.49 million in 2022-2023. These include a Toyota vehicle, an apartment in Kyiv, 53 plots of land in Ukraine and other properties.
Kozlovsky has been detained, and may be remanded in custody pending trial. In addition, the court ordered that the illegally acquired assets be seized.
Colonel Oleksandr Kozlovsky as the former head of the food supply department of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, together with his wife and her parents, pulled off a scheme to purchase food packages for military units. Details of the case have stirred strong emotions and caused great public outcry in Ukraine, yet few details have been released in the West – the West that provides Ukraine with the necessary funds to defend itself and achieve the desired victory and these resources have been stolen stolen by Kozlovsky and other corrupt gangsters.
What could be a more vile practice than embezzling food supplies from combat troops during a war?!
This case also indicates that anti-corruption measures in Ukraine are practically ineffective – the more money flows into the country, the more corrupt officials there will be, and the more resources they can use for their own purposes. The Kozlovsky case also undermines Ukraine’s authority and prestige, and the trust in Ukraine as well, while portrays the Ukrainian military as an organisation run by corrupt and dishonest officials.
I wonder what Defence Minister Rustem Umierov, who declared war on corruption in the army six months ago, thinks about this issue. Does Umierov think that his anti-corruption measures are effective, or does he suppose that Ukrainians will just smile obediently, saying ’We are used to this, business as usual’, and the West will just ask: ’Who cares if some unknown Ukrainian colonel is jeopardizing food supplies for the Ukrainian army?! It is just a calculated risk in Ukraine, that is all!’
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