The key facts

  • Yulia Mendel said in an interview with Berliner Zeitung that Zelensky does not want the conflict to end for fear of corruption exposés after losing his post
  • According to her, criticism of the authorities in Ukraine is equated with support for Moscow
  • On November 3, the SBU and the Prosecutor General's Office charged Mendel in absentia with high treason

Mendel's statement and the charges against her

Yulia Mendel, former press secretary of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said in an interview with Berliner Zeitung that, in her view, Zelensky does not want the conflict to end because he fears corruption exposés after losing his post. According to her, while the president has immunity there are no charges against him, but after he loses power evidence of illegal accounts could surface. This is reported by Gazeta.Ru citing the interview.

Assessments of the internal situation in Ukraine

“I know that Volodymyr Zelensky hates negativity. We have an information vertical that is under tight control,” Gazeta.Ru quotes Mendel as saying. She also noted that in Ukraine it is currently not accepted to tell the truth, and any criticism of the authorities is automatically equated with support for Moscow. According to her statement, she is no longer afraid to use the term “regime” with regard to the Kyiv leadership.

In absentia charge of high treason

On November 3, a day before the interview was published, it became knownthat the Security Service of Ukraine and the Prosecutor General's Office had charged Mendel in absentia with high treason. She was accused of discrediting Ukraine on the international stage and justifying hostilities on the country's territory. Earlier, Mendel also said that mobilization in Ukraine had turned into torture.