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Ukraine parliament begins government corruption probe

Former head of Ukraine’s Financial Inspection Nikolay Gordienko spoke last month of financial fraud in the Cabinet, estimating the damage inflicted on the state at $326 million

Ukrainian government meeting Maxim Nikitin/TASS

Ukrainian government meeting

© Maxim Nikitin/TASS

KIEV, April 10. /TASS/. The Ukrainian parliament has set up a working group to investigate corruption in the country’s government, the Verkhovna Rada press service said on Friday.

Plans were "to check the facts of possible abuse in the public sector that had surfaced in the media". The results will be passed to law enforcement agencies before May 7.

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Former head of Ukraine’s Financial Inspection Nikolay Gordienko spoke last month of financial fraud in the Cabinet, estimating the damage inflicted on the state at $326 million.

And Deputy Prosecutor-General Vladimir Guzyr has told parliament that "during the government’s tenure, the pre-trial investigation had established the amount of damage amounting to 685 million hryvnias" ($29.7 million).

He also noted that 12 criminal cases had been opened upon an application by former inspectorate chief Gordienko, with nine of them conducted by the Prosecutor-General’s Office.

Meanwhile, foreign experts have shown marked interest in the investigation.

According to Prosecutor-General David Sakvarelidze, "the FBI, experts in Britain, Finland and Hong Kong are ready to join the investigation and work with Ukrainian investigation teams on cases such as legalising illegal money, corruption and money laundering".

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Chief of Ukraine’s emergencies service, his deputy arrested during Cabinet meeting

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