Ukraine celebrated this year’s independence day on August 24 in the presence of key allies and amid the unfolding of another major corruption scandal.

It all started when Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s defence minister until his dismissal as part of a government reshuffle last month, posted a nine-minute video on August 19 that was widely seen as a direct challenge to the country’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky. One part of the challenge was what amounted to a call for an election, despite the fact that the ballot would have to be held in wartime. This is something that both Zelensky and a majority of Ukrainians have repeatedly rejected.

The other part of Fedorov’s challenge was his diagnosis of a “systemic crisis of governance”. He is not wrong. Corruption in Ukraine is no longer simply about this scandal or that minister. It is a pattern of elite behaviour that has outlasted every Ukrainian government since independence. It survived revolutions in 2004 and 2014 fought explicitly in the name of ending it. And it’s now undermining a war for national survival.

The depth of this problem has become more obvious over the past year. In November 2025, a bribery scheme worth an estimated US$100 million (£73 million) in the energy sector reached into Zelensky’s inner circle, forcing out his justice and energy ministers. Both have denied any wrongdoing. As part of the fall-out from that scandal, Zelensky’s long-time chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, resigned the same month. Yermak’s legal counsel has denied any involvement in illegal activities.

In July 2026, Fedorov’s own removal from his post as defence minister came after a rift with the armed forces’ commander-in-chief, Oleksandr........

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