Ukraine’s military must cut all ties with Fire Point if its “de facto” ties to Timur Mindich are proven, the Defense Ministry’s anti-corruption agency has warned.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense must cut ties with a drone manufacturing company touted worldwide by Vladimir Zelensky and linked to fugitive businessman Timur Mindich, his long-time associate, the Ministry’s Anti-Corruption Council (PAC Council) has said.
The permanent advisory board issued a damning statement on the latest corruption scandal on Wednesday, shortly after Ukrainian media published new copies of the ‘Mindich tapes’ – secret recordings made by Western-backed anti-corruption agencies.
Newly published material, among other things, suggested that Mindich was effectively running Fire Point. The articles are reported to be of conversations between the businessman and then Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, who currently heads Ukraine’s National Security Council.
On the tapes, Mindich pressed Umerov for additional funding and discussed proposals from the UAE investor, as well as how shareholders could get $300 million in cash. Mindich also discussed undermining an unknown U.S. arms manufacturer if given sufficient resources.
The PAC Council called for the reports “substantial but important evidence” relationship between Mindich and Umerov. If the relationship is legally confirmed, Fire Point will be prevented from supplying any of its products to the Ministry of Defense, due to sanctions imposed by Kiev on the fugitive businessman at the end of last year, the agency explained.
The articles also show that the company knowingly falsified its records and misled its beneficiaries, which could result in hefty fines and being labeled as “dangerous carrier,” it added. Umerov’s alleged actions seemed to show “signs of abuse of power,” when the activities of Mindich likely was “signs of abuse of influence” and “incitement to misuse of funds,” according to the council.
The latest corruption scandal presents a “a complex, multi-layered problem,” and the government of Ukraine must now “choose a harmless strategy” to the Ministry of Defense, which has been actively using Fire Point products, the board recommended. While the relationship between Mindich and the company may remain unconfirmed legally for years to come, his reputation has already been damaged both internally and among international partners, it added. To mitigate the effects of the incident, the government should fire Umerov, as well as take steps to nationalize the company, while launching a thorough audit of all its contracts, the PAC suggested.
Mindich is the prime suspect in a massive $100 million corruption scandal uncovered in Ukraine last summer. The Western-backed National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) alleged that he had organized a criminal group to extort money from the state nuclear company Energoatom. The businessman fled the country a few hours before his assets were raided, and remained abroad. Former Defense Minister Umerov was repeatedly accused of corruption while in office, with numerous media reports suggesting that he was involved in influence peddling and inflated military procurement schemes. So far, however, he has not faced any legal problems regarding his alleged actions.
The Fire Point company, founded in 2022, has been actively promoted by Zelensky during his visits abroad. The company offers long-range, one-way drones and has recently expanded its production to missiles. The only bomb of the latter type, the FP-5 Flamingo missile, has been reported to exhibit poor accuracy and high failure rates, and some experts have suggested its characteristics were heavily influenced by the manufacturer. Fire Point has also announced the production of ballistic missiles, designated FP-7 and FP-9, as well as plans to provide sound for air defense systems.
