Zelensky’s chief of staff Yermak resigns after search

Ukraine woke up to a big change at the top. Andriy Yermak, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s chief of staff and lead fixer on talks with the United States, has resigned hours after anti‑corruption investigators searched his Kyiv apartment. In a late address, Zelensky thanked Yermak for “patriotic” service and urged calm: “If we lose unity, we risk losing everything: ourselves, Ukraine, our future.” Officials have not named Yermak a suspect; the search forms part of a wider inquiry.

Why this matters to diplomacy is straightforward: Yermak had been steering Ukraine’s side as Washington pushes an updated framework to end the war. After a leak of a 28‑point draft widely criticised as too generous to Moscow, US and Ukrainian teams met in Geneva to rework it; more talks are expected next week. For students of politics, this is a textbook example of how personnel changes can jolt negotiations without stopping them.

Quick explainer you can use in class: Ukraine’s anti‑corruption system has three specialist bodies. NABU investigates high‑level graft; SAPO prosecutes those cases; the High Anti‑Corruption Court (HACC) hears them. Their independence is a live issue. In July, parliament briefly weakened NABU and SAPO’s autonomy, prompting street protests and EU pushback; a week later, lawmakers restored their independence.

Inside the current case, known as Operation Midas, detectives allege a $100m scheme of kickbacks around Energoatom, the state nuclear power company. Investigators say contractors were forced to pay 10–15% to keep business flowing, with a Kyiv “back office” laundering the money; the operation drew on thousands of hours of recordings and dozens of searches. Remember: allegations are not verdicts, and due process applies.

The political fallout has already claimed ministers. Energy minister Svitlana Hrynchuk and justice minister Herman Halushchenko resigned this month amid the probe and were later dismissed by parliament; both deny wrongdoing. Their removal underlines how anti‑corruption work intersects with wartime governance and EU entry goals.

Yermak’s own public red line was clear as talks intensified. “As long as Zelensky is president, no one should count on us giving up territory. He will not sign away territory,” he told The Atlantic this week. That stance now has to be carried by a new negotiator, but the policy line remains the president’s.

On the US side, Secretary of State Marco Rubio has led Geneva sessions and says progress has been made on an “updated and refined” framework. Next steps include further meetings with Kyiv and European partners, while the Kremlin says it will examine the revised ideas in Moscow next week. Media literacy point: leaked drafts are not final agreements; look for who has signed what, and when.

Movements matter too. US Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll met Zelensky and other officials in Kyiv on 19–20 November as part of the administration’s Ukraine track, while Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected in Moscow for follow‑on talks. The personnel list helps you see who is carrying messages-and where.

Russia’s message has not shifted. Vladimir Putin says fighting will end only if Ukrainian forces withdraw from all of Donbas-warning that, if not, Russia will take the territory “by force of arms.” Understanding this helps you read the gap between negotiation atmospherics and battlefield demands.

Hungary’s Viktor Orbán, meanwhile, met Putin and offered Budapest as a venue for a Trump–Putin meeting; Putin publicly welcomed the idea after an earlier plan was shelved. This strand shows how third countries can try to shape the stage-even if the script remains contested.

Context you’ll feel at street level: winter power cuts and damage to energy sites have left many Ukrainians with long blackouts, which is why alleged graft in the energy sector has sparked anger. National grid officials warned of rolling outages of up to 8–16 hours in some regions after recent strikes.

Public pressure has been building for weeks. One Ukrainian poll by research group Sociopolis reported around 70% support for Yermak’s resignation in mid‑November; other surveys vary, but the trend line for trust was negative. As for next steps, Zelensky says he will consult on a replacement and reorganise his office; talks with the US continue.