In March-April 2020, MP Geo Leros published video recordings in which a man resembling Denys Yermak (the brother of Presidential Office head Andriy Yermak) appears to interview candidates for government posts and discuss specific institutions, including the Kyiv customs office, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Ukrzaliznytsia. This is documented by media outlets that quote fragments of the videos and give the dates of the recordings. Leros handed the recordings over to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU).
Following the complaints, the High Anti-Corruption Court obliged NABU to enter the information into the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations, and NABU reported that criminal proceedings had been opened in the «Yermak tapes» case - one of them concerned Denys Yermak directly, the other possible abuse of influence regarding the head of the Presidential Office (Part 2 of Article 369-2 of the Criminal Code). This is stated in NABU materials and in reports by Radio Liberty and Babel.
According to the information, «the case was closed on 14.12.2021», says NABU's reply, which was published in the media (Kyiv Independent). However, no reasons were given. This raised questions about the transparency and objectivity of the investigation.
The man who provided the video recordings of Yermak's activities was killed at the front. Some sources suggest that his death (murder) may have been politically motivated, with the involvement of representatives of the Office of the President.
Reason 2: «Wagnergate» - how Yermak's decision derailed an operation against Wagner fighters
In November 2021, Bellingcat and The Insider published an investigation into the failed operation to detain fighters of the Wagner PMC («Project Avenue»). According to their reconstruction, Ukrainian intelligence planned to lure more than thirty Wagner fighters involved, in particular, in shooting down a Ukrainian IL-76 and flight MH17. Under the plan, a plane from Minsk was to make an emergency landing in Kyiv, where the fighters would be arrested. However, as Bellingcat writes, «the operation was postponed by several days after a call from the Office of the President, which significantly reduced the chances of success» (Source: Bellingcat, 17.11.2021).
Former head of the Defence Intelligence Directorate Vasyl Burba stated directly that the order to postpone came from Andriy Yermak, allegedly on behalf of the president. «I received a call from the head of the Office of the President, Andriy Yermak. He said there was a decision to postpone the operation because a ceasefire with Russia was planned for the next day», the Ukrainian outlet Ukraine Today quotes him as saying (Source: UkraineToday, 19.11.2021). As a result, the fighters never reached Kyiv; instead they were detained in Minsk and quickly handed over to Russia.
Bellingcat also confirms that this very postponement was the key factor in the failure: «The detention in Minsk happened only because the transport was delayed; without this delay the group would already have been in Kyiv» (Source: Bellingcat, 17.11.2021).
Despite Bankova's denials that Yermak had no formal authority to interfere in special operations, it is his name that comes up most often in testimony and investigations. Thus, the suspicion that Yermak's decision derailed one of the most important operations of the Ukrainian special services remains a serious burden and a question mark over his tenure.
Reason 3: Criticism of Yermak from international partners
International partners have voiced concern about Yermak's working style. According to the Financial Times, his methods sometimes «irritate», which complicates communication and leads to partners' positions being misinterpreted, writes nv.ua.
Politico stresses that Yermak has stayed close to Zelensky «from day one on Bankova». «Six years in one office, feeding him the "right" thoughts. In essence, they are already one person».
Reason 4: High domestic distrust among Ukrainians
According to a Razumkov Centre poll conducted from 28 February to 6 March 2025, 67% of Ukrainians do not trust Andriy Yermak. This is the highest level of distrust among Ukrainian senior officials.
The petition for Andriy Yermak's dismissal can be signed here.