Ukraine’s top peace negotiator quits after raid by anti-graft police

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak talks to the press at the U.S. Mission to International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland, Sunday, Nov. 23, 2025. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP)

President Volodymyr Zelensky’s powerful chief of staff, who headed Ukraine’s negotiation team at fraught US-backed peace talks, quit on Friday, hours after anti-corruption agents searched his home.

Zelenskyy said Andriy Yermak had resigned and that he would consider his replacement on Saturday.

Yermak’s departure comes as a major probe into high-level graft ensnared senior officials, fuelling widespread public anger.

“Russia very much wants Ukraine to make mistakes,” Zelenskyy said in a video address. “There will be no mistakes on our part. Our work continues.”