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| Presiden Ukraina Volodymyr Zelensky |
Berlin - German newspaper Die Welt has unveiled Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's "secret deals" based on a new book published.
According to the report, Ukraine's head of state may have evaded taxes at home. The newspaper quoted a section of a book entitled "Zelensky: A Biography" which discussed various alleged corruption cases involving the Ukrainian leader.
It explained that in 2019, Zelensky was found to have an offshore account in Cyprus. Research by Slidstvo.info revealed the former comedian owned companies in the British Virgin Islands and Belize, including the "previously unknown" Maltex Multicapital Corp, which owns an apartment in central London worth $7.5 million.
The company is also said to have received a total of $40 million from Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoysky since 2012.
Zelensky apparently transferred his stake in the company to a close friend shortly before the 2019 presidential election, which he later won. While it was unclear what the purpose behind the scheme was, Ukrainian investigative journalists speculated at the time that Zelensky might have used it to evade taxes at home, or that he was participating in money laundering for Kolomoysky.
The book excerpt also states that the screening of the documentary “Offshore 95”, which centers on Zelensky's alleged illicit dealings revealed in the Pandora Papers, was canceled in Kiev at the last minute last October. “The cinema manager appears to have received a call from the SBU, the Ukrainian security service,” the book says, citing Ukrainian media. "Only thanks to public anger, the screening of the film was carried out at a later date," the book says.
Although initially refusing to answer questions raised by Slidstvo.info, Zelensky's office explained in October 2021 that "everyone relocated their business overseas, especially in the TV industry" during the "Yanukovich era," referring to former President Viktor Yanukovich.
Zelensky also claimed tax authorities checked his transactions "nearly daily" at the time, implying they had never found any violations. He also vehemently denies being involved in money laundering, but avoids questions about whether he actually pays all taxes due every time.
However, a journalist from Slidstvo.info seemed dissatisfied with the president's answer and suggested the next day that the existence of this offshore company merely points to the fact Zelensky does not "trust the country where you build your business and for which you are responsible." "You want to hide something, and you have a reason for it," said the journalist.
According to the book, on October 27, Ukraine's National Corruption Prevention Agency announced that it had conducted an investigation into Zelensky's business activities and found nothing illegal.