Switzerland files criminal charges against Ukrainian MP aligned with PM

Swiss prosecutors have filed criminal charges against MP Mykola Martynenko, a close political ally to Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, for taking a bribe, reported on March 22 MP Serhiy Leshchenko. The Prosecutor General’s Office of Switzerland couldn’t reveal any more details other than having conducted its investigation since 2013, he said. At the end of December, a Czech newspaper reported that the charges alleged Martynenko accepted a bribe for a contract from a Czech firm that provides equipment for nuclear power plants.

The bribe allegedly involved 30 million Swiss francs that were blocked in a Swiss bank, which reported the suspicious financial transaction, Swiss journalists reported. Martynenko said the claims are a media manipulation by Leshchenko as a part of an information campaign against him and the Czech company by the Russian government, which wants to undermine a competitor.

Zenon Zawada: Anytime the Swiss government files criminal charges in a financial affair, it’s worth believing they have a solid foundation. Whether they result in a conviction or not, it’s these allegations of corruptions such as these that have hurt the reputation of the post-Maidan government, led by Yatsenyuk. This is why the West is reluctant to offer Ukraine aid that is beyond the minimum.

Unfortunately, the inability of the current government to pursue serious reforms, particularly in the sphere of corruption, will continue to affect the Ukrainian economy and social conditions negatively, which does not bode well for creating stability in the region. Simply put, the West would want to do more but the behavior of Ukrainian officials isn’t letting them so far.