Ukrainian Court Has Ordered Agricultural Minister To Be Detained

MYKOLA Solsky, the minister of agriculture, was placed under arrest by a Ukrainian court on Friday due to accusations that he participated in the unlawful purchase of state-owned land valued at approximately $7 million.

The claims, which concern the period from 2017 to 2021, are refuted by Solsky, who took office as agriculture minister in March 2022.

A bail of 75.7 million hryvnias ($1.9 million) was set by the judge.

Although Solsky officially resigned on Thursday, he is still in office until the parliament reviews his request.

As far as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is concerned, he is the first minister to be designated a suspect in a corruption investigation.

Notwithstanding prosecutors' claims that Solsky may face up to 12 years in prison for the charges against him, the judge ordered that he stay in custody until June 24.

The 44-year-old Solsky has been in the forefront of Ukraine's efforts to maintain its grain sector in the face of Russia's full-scale invasion, which has closed off Black Sea export routes, scattered landmines across fields, and resulted in farmer occupation.

According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau, the accusations are related to a plan to purchase land worth 291 million hryvnia ($7.35 million) and attempt to purchase land for 190 million hryvnia that is owned by the state.

Prosecutors said that the land was illegally acquired from two state corporations and given to war veterans with the understanding that they would lease it to certain private companies.

Solsky did not profit from any such plot, his attorney and he stated as much during the tribunal on Thursday.

The Ukrainian minister of agriculture will play a major role in the talks to incorporate the massive grain economy of the nation into the 27-member bloc. Kyiv has submitted an application to join the European Union.

When contacted by a journalist regarding the Solsky custody ruling, a significant Ukrainian farm union declined to comment.

Following accusations of impropriety involving the defense ministry last year, Zelenskiy changed his minister of defense in an effort to present a zero-tolerance policy toward corruption.