إيغور كليمنكو ينفي تواصله مع المتورطين في قضية «كارفاغين»

لماذا يهمّ ذلك

تنخدع Renewed Sur prises ب about the boundaries between an attempted influence and an actual relationship with law enforcement. The case involves alleged systematic bribes to officials of the SBU, the National Police and the Office of the Prosecutor General, while the U420 network has already been dismantled. The statements also illustrate how a criminal group allegedly attempted to influence regulatory decisions through intermediaries rather than direct contact with a minister.

ماذا حدث

On November 6, 2026, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Ihor Klimenko denied having any connection with the “Carthage” case. He said that the suspects did not approach him with proposals concerning the U420 retail network, and that he knew nobody in his close or distant circle who could pressure him on their behalf. Responding to the mention of his surname in the published recordings, Klimenko said: “Я офігів, чесно” (“I was dumbfounded, honestly”).

At the same time, he characterized the discussion of his surname and that of the minister of health as a “conversation between two criminals” about ways to resolve the problem that the Interior and Health ministries posed for them. He allowed that highlighting a specific surname in recordings could hypothetically be a tool of pressure, but said he was not sure that this was the case here.

According to NACP detective unit head Oleksandr Abakumov, the leader of the “Khimprom” drug syndicate, Yegor Burkin, known as “the Mexican,” discussed the possibility of bribing the then interior minister Ihor Klimenko so that he would not initiate a ban on the chemical formulas of the group’s narcotics. The investigators said that intermediaries proposed giving a share in the drug business to people who could allegedly influence Klimenko instead of approaching him directly, and emphasized that there had been no direct communication with Klimenko about U420. Detectives were working to identify the individuals who claimed such influence and intended to receive a share in the criminal business.

On November 4, NACP and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office announced the exposure of the “Khimprom” drug syndicate with a Russian connection as part of the “Carthage” case. According to investigators, the syndicate operated under the cover of SBU and National Police officials, and its participants were suspected of organizing fraudulent call centres, drug trafficking, production of counterfeit cigarettes and counterfeit foreign currency. On November 5, NACP and SAP announced suspicions against five participants in the group, and NACP detained the first deputy head of the SBU’s Department of State Protection, General Serhii Dukу.

كيف تصفه المصادر الأوكرانية

Українські ЗМІ зосередилися на відповідях Ігоря Клименка на згадку його прізвища в записах, на запереченні контактів із фігурантами та на оцінці загрози дестабілізації. Окремо висвітлювалися роль посередників, обговорення можливого підкупу та фактичне закриття мережі U420. Частина антикорупційних активістів після оприлюднення записів закликала президента Володимира Зеленського негайно звільнити Клименка.

أين تختلف الروايات

Кліменко characterizes the published discussions as criminals exploring ways to resolve the problem posed by the Interior and Health ministries, while investigators describe them as discussions of possible bribery or pressure on him. The available investigative materials record the speakers under the pseudonyms “the Mexican” and “the Criminal”, contain no recordings of Klimenko’s or Liashko’s voices, and establish no facts of bribes to either official; one article inferred from initials and context that the references were to them. There is also a difference over the sums discussed: an anti-corruption centre says “the Mexican” offered 2 million dollars for the removal of the head of the National Police anti-narcotics department, whereas the recorded offer quoted in the case materials refers to 500 for “comrade K” plus 200 for an intermediary, with the currency unspecified.

الخلفية

Ihor Klimenko headed the Ministry of Internal Affairs from February 2023 until August 2026 and became Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council on August 3 after declining the defence minister’s post amid public protests. The U420 network sold narcotic substances disguised as souvenirs. The Interior Ministry and the Ministry of Health prepared for roughly two months a resolution banning the U420 substances; inclusion of their formulas in the list of prohibited substances enabled the closure of the shops selling them. On April 2026, “the Mexican” allegedly threatened to trigger a political crisis, secure the dismissal of the Interior Ministry’s leadership and launch a misinformation campaign; mass graffiti with calls to remove Klimenko appeared on former drug advertising sites. Klimenko attributed the removal of Department of Strategic Research head Andrii Rubel to internal issues unrelated to call centres.