Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced today that Andriy Yermak, his powerful chief of staff and lead peace negotiator, has resigned following searches at his residence by anti-corruption investigators.

Yermak, a longtime confidant of the president and a central figure in both domestic governance and the U.S.-backed peace negotiations, relinquished his post amid an expanding major graft investigation.

The searches were carried out by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.

Although investigators have not formally named Yermak as a suspect, the political pressure on him had mounted throughout the week as multiple senior officials fell in connection with a shocking energy-sector corruption scandal.

That scandal centres on alleged kickbacks and fraud at the state nuclear power firm, with losses totalling about one hundred million dollars.

Former ministers have resigned, and other prominent figures — including a business associate of the president who has fled the country — are now under arrest or investigation.

The morning raids on Yermak’s residence and offices came just days after his party colleagues publicly called for his dismissal.

During a closed-door parliamentary meeting earlier this week, many lawmakers from the governing party demanded that the president dismiss Yermak to restore credibility.

Until today, the president had resisted those calls.

President Zelenskiy, in a video announcement, thanked Yermak for his service and declared that the presidential office would be reorganised to avoid further distractions.

He emphasised that the country’s focus must remain on defending Ukraine and advancing peace negotiations, not internal political turmoil.

Yermak, who has headed the presidential office since early two-thousand-twenty, confirmed he was cooperating fully with investigators, noting that the searches were conducted without obstruction.

He acknowledged that his resignation may aid in preventing further damage to government cohesion and public trust.

The resignation threatens to reshape Ukraine’s negotiating team just as Kyiv engages the United States and other partners in high-stakes diplomacy over the war with Russia.

It also underscores growing international expectations that Kyiv must tackle corruption decisively to sustain external support and advance its bid for European Union integration.

A successor to Yermak is expected to be appointed imminently as part of a broader effort to stabilise the leadership of the presidential office and restore confidence in government accountability.