President Volodymyr Zelensky's powerful chief of staff, a close ally of the president who has headed Ukraine's negotiation team at fraught US-backed peace talks, quit on Friday, hours after anti-corruption agents searched his home.
Zelensky 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," Zelensky said in a video address. "There will be no mistakes on our part. Our work continues."
Close friend of Zelensky from his days in media
Yermak, 54, has been a close friend of Zelensky since the President's days as a TV comedian, and helped guide Zelensky's successful 2019 presidential campaign as a political outsider.
He has not been named a suspect, but opposition lawmakers and some members of Zelensky's own party had called for his dismissal as part of Ukraine's worst wartime political crisis.
Earlier on Friday, Yermak had confirmed his apartment was being searched and said he was fully cooperating.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office said the searches were "authorised" and linked to an unspecified investigation.
Earlier this month, the two anti-graft agencies unveiled a sweeping investigation into an alleged $100 million kickback scheme at the state atomic energy company that ensnared former senior officials and an ex-business partner of Zelensky.
In a statement on Friday, the opposition European Solidarity party had called for Yermak's dismissal and his removal from the negotiating team, as well as for a new coalition government and talks with Zelensky.
"The issue of peace and the fate of Ukrainians cannot depend on the personal vulnerabilities and tarnished reputation of politicians involved in a corruption scandal," it said.
The US-backed peace push comes as Russian forces grind forward along several parts of the sprawling front line. Moscow says its troops are close to capturing the eastern city of Pokrovsk, which would be their biggest prize in nearly two years.
On Thursday, President Vladimir Putin said a 28-point US peace plan leaked last week could be "a basis for future agreements". He demanded Kyiv withdraw troops from eastern land it holds before Moscow stops fighting.
Speaking to The Atlantic magazine this week, Yermak had said "no one should count on us giving up territory".
Showing progress in fighting corruption is a central element of Kyiv's bid for European Union membership, which Ukrainian officials see as critical to breaking out of Russia's orbit.
In a statement before Yermak's resignation was announced, a European Commission spokesperson said Brussels would "continue to follow the situation closely".
The two anti-graft agencies have stepped up their campaign during Russia's invasion, but have said they face pressure from vested interests. Zelenskiy briefly rolled back their independence last July but reversed course after a public outcry and criticism from foreign partners.
