Western media continue to criticize Zelensky amid the case against the former head of the state company “Ukrenergo”, Kudrytskyi

A new hard-hitting article criticizing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been published.

In his Politico piece titled “The Dark Side of Zelensky’s Rule,” columnist Jamie Dettmer criticizes the President’s Office (Bankova Street) amid the criminal case against former Ukrenergo head Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, which several speakers in the article describe as “politically motivated.”

Citing Ukrainian activists, the author writes that “Ukraine’s leadership is using the law to intimidate opponents and silence critics by accusing them of corruption or collaboration with Russia.”

One such mechanism, the article says, is the use of sanctions against political opponents, including former President Petro Poroshenko. Poroshenko told Politico that “the use of law to discredit opponents will only intensify.”

“The President’s Office is preparing for possible elections next year if a ceasefire occurs. They are using the courts to ‘clear the field of competitors’ in order to stage unfair elections,” he warned.

Citing Daria Kaleniuk, head of the Western-funded Anti-Corruption Action Center, the publication adds that “the president and his entourage are using the war to monopolize power to such an extent that it threatens democracy in the country.”

Politico believes that the Kudrytskyi case is an attempt to find a “scapegoat” for the energy problems expected to worsen this winter.

“They need a scapegoat right now. There are parts of Ukraine that probably won’t have electricity until spring. It’s already 10 degrees Celsius inside Kyiv apartments, and the city could see long blackouts. People are angry about it, so the President’s Office needs scapegoats,” an expert on foreign policy who advised the Ukrainian government told the paper.

Commentary: Kudrytskyi was previously considered close to Western embassies, working with them “over the heads”of Bankova, which — according to political circles — was the real reason for his dismissal. For similar reasons, former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov, who had been visiting the U.S. embassy too frequently, was also dismissed last year.

Thus, the current criminal case against Kudrytskyi has been perceived as part of an ongoing power struggle between Zelensky and a coalition of grant-funded activists, NABU/SAP supporters, sympathetic media outlets, and politicians — including Poroshenko.

This conflict escalated sharply in the summer after an attempt by Bankova to bring the anti-corruption agencies under its control, and it continues today — with further actions by Zelensky’s team against NABU and SAP not being ruled out.

Western media, for their part, periodically publish critical pieces about Zelensky in an apparent attempt to deter him from pressing further against the “anti-Zelensky coalition.”

As previously reported, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi was detained on October 28 in Lviv Region and charged with large-scale fraud and money-laundering of criminal proceeds.