PARIS, November 17. /TASS/. Weakened by a corruption scandal, Vladimir Zelensky is trying to secure the support of his allies, France’s Le Monde reported.

According to the newspaper, revelations of large-scale corruption in Kiev could strengthen the arguments of European politicians who favor reducing aid to Ukraine and oppose its accession to the EU. The corruption scandal has outraged the Ukrainian population, who are tired of nearly four years of conflict.

The Elysee Palace has demanded that Kiev fight corruption uncompromisingly. "The Ukrainian authorities are well aware of our demands," a representative of the French leader's administration told the newspaper.

Zelensky arrived in Paris on November 17 to discuss French military aid to Kiev.

On November 10, Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced a large-scale operation dubbed Midas to uncover a major corruption scheme in the energy sector. Searches were conducted at the home of Timur Mindich, who is often referred to as Zelensky’s "wallet," as well as at the residence of Justice Minister German Galuschenko, who had previously served as Minister of Energy, and at the Energoatom company. The NABU then began publishing excerpts from conversations in Mindich's apartment, during which corruption schemes were discussed.

Charges in this case were brought against Mindich, former advisor to the Energy Minister Igor Mironyuk, Energoatom's executive director for security Dmitry Basov, businessmen Alexander Zuckerman and Igor Fursenko, as well as Lessa Ustimenko and Lyudmila Zorina. The latter three worked in the so-called back office, which was involved in money laundering. In addition, charges were brought against former Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Chernyshov, who is also known as a close associate of Zelensky. Mindich left the country a few hours before the searches began.