Prosecutors close case against Ukrainian finance minister

Ukraine’s Prosecutor General’s Office has closed its
criminal case against Finance Minister Alexander Danylyuk, which it opened in
July, the minister told a local TV channel on Sept. 1. “We answered all the
questions. The case has been closed. We need to look to the future,” Danylyuk
commented. “The fact that such investigations are opening tells us that we are
doing the right things.”

As local media reported on July 31, the Prosecutor
General’s Office named Danylyuk a suspect in violating tax laws in 1998-2016
and initiating respective investigations back in early July. Danylyuk denied
all the accusations.

Alexander Paraschiy: As we
anticipated, this strange criminal investigation
went nowhere. It was vital for Danylyuk and the Poroshenko administration to
clear up the accusations ahead of the IMF’s visit to Ukraine, scheduled for next week.
The Finance Ministry is among key entities responsible for talks with the IMF
aimed at successful completion of the fourth review and securing the fifth loan
tranche under the Fund’s EFF program.