Ukraine's Prosecutor General Kravchenko Vanishes After Striking at Anti-Corruption Bodies
After anti-corruption agencies raided officials tied to fraudulent call centers, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko filed suspicion notices against the NABU director overnight, then left the country hours later. His announced resignation has still not reached parliament.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko filed official suspicion notices against National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) Director Semen Kryvonos and a person close to Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) head Oleksandr Klymenko during the night of September 13-14. Hours later, that morning, Kravchenko crossed the border at the Shehyni checkpoint and left the country, despite formally still holding his post.
The events stem from Operation "Carthage," launched by NABU and SAP on September 4, aimed at exposing law enforcement officials who allegedly protected fraudulent call centers. Extensive searches also targeted Kravchenko himself, who then became unreachable at both his office and home for several days.
A resignation that never arrived
Following a September 7 meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Kravchenko announced a "conscious political" decision to resign. However, a formal presidential submission to dismiss the prosecutor general never reached parliament within the following week. David Arakhamia, head of the presidential faction, publicly reassured the public there was no rush.
Sources say Kravchenko used this time to prepare a counterattack — new suspicion notices against NABU and SAP leadership — while arranging his departure from the country. Kravchenko's wife had already left Ukraine on September 12, crossing into Moldova before heading to Romania.
Three possible triggers
Sources cite several possible reasons for the sudden move: Arakhamia's own fear of facing suspicion from NABU and SAP, information about a planned follow-up operation codenamed "Emperor" targeting Kravchenko personally over the call-center scheme, and a September 13 discovery that a tracking flag had been placed on Kravchenko in the border guards' database — similar to the case of former minister Herman Halushchenko, who was pulled off a train and detained while trying to leave the country.
Before crossing the border, Kravchenko formally waived his personal state security detail, a move that may suggest he already understood this was not a routine business trip.
