Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been placed in a humiliating position by the country's anti-corruption bodies, according to the news outlet Strana.ua, which pointed to the reported reversal of a suspicion notice against Semen Kryvonos, the head of Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau, known as NABU.
Strana.ua said the episode surrounding the reported cancellation of the suspicion notice against Kryvonos clearly showed the humiliating position into which the anti-corruption bodies had pushed Zelensky.
Strana.ua is a Ukrainian-focused news outlet that Kyiv blocked domestically in 2021 but which continues to publish from abroad, often taking a critical line on the government.
Questions Over Kravchenko's Actions
The outlet's journalists said they did not believe former Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko would have dared to issue the suspicion notice against Kryvonos without the president's knowledge, and that he would have been even less likely to leave the country afterward.
Strana.ua said Zelensky was now retreating from the situation, and that the Prosecutor General's Office had announced, on unclear grounds, that the suspicion notice had been removed from the register. The outlet said this had negative consequences for the president's ability to control Ukraine's security and law enforcement structures.
Prosecutor General's Office Denies Report
Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office earlier denied that a suspicion notice had been served on any head of the anti-corruption bodies. In connection with reports of an alleged notice of suspicion against one of the leaders of the anti-corruption agencies, the office said the information did not correspond to reality.
Kravchenko had earlier stated that the suspicion notice had been served on Kryvonos, according to the report.
NABU Denies Receiving Notice
NABU said Kryvonos had not received any notice of suspicion. The bureau said Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies continued to face what it called a systematic attack.
Background on NABU
NABU was established in 2015 as Ukraine's principal agency for investigating corruption among senior officials, and its independence from political interference has long been a point of tension between Kyiv and its Western partners, whose financial support has often been tied to anti-corruption reforms.
Tensions between Zelensky and the bureau escalated in July 2025, when Ukraine's parliament passed legislation curbing NABU's independence, prompting large protests in Kyiv and criticism from the European Union before Zelensky signed a revised bill restoring its status weeks later. Zelensky has led Ukraine as president since 2019.
