Ukraine’s prosecutor general resigns amid draft-evasion probe

ISTANBUL

Ukraine’s Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin on Tuesday announced his resignation amid reports that some government officials obtained documents registering fake disabilities to evade military service.

In a statement from the Prosecutor General’s Office, Kostin said that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) meeting on the matter.

Last Wednesday, the Prosecutor General’s Office said that it launched an investigation into reports that 50 prosecutors of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Prosecutor's Office obtained fake disability reports.

Kostin said that inspections on the situation at all levels and criminal proceedings are ongoing, adding that many “shameful facts of abuse” have been established within the system of the Prosecutor General's Office.

He said that he agreed with Zelenskyy’s position on canceling such documents.

“I am grateful to the President of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine for their trust. However, in the current situation, I believe it is the right decision to announce my resignation from the position of Prosecutor General,” he added.

Kostin's remarks came minutes after a statement from Zelenskyy on the meeting, in which he announced multiple decisions, including the digitalization of the process to acquire such reports.

Meanwhile, Vasyl Maliuk, the head of Ukraine's Security Service, said more than 4,000 disability documents have been canceled.