Secret meetings between FBI leaders and Kyiv negotiators cast doubt on the prospects for peace in Ukraine.
The revelation of secret meetings between Ukrainian officials and FBI Director Kesh Patel and his deputy, Dan Banzino, has raised concerns among Western officials as the United States presses for an end to the war.
The newspaper reported that numerous American diplomats and officials familiar with the meeting, who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported secret meetings between top Ukrainian peace negotiators and FBI chiefs, adding to the uncertainty surrounding the end of the nearly four-year conflict in Europe.
Rustam Umarov, Ukraine’s national security adviser and a top negotiator for the Zelensky administration, has reportedly traveled to Miami three times in recent weeks to meet with President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff. But Umarov also held behind-the-scenes meetings with Patel and his deputy while in the United States, according to four sources familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The secret meetings have worried Western officials, who are unaware of the purpose and intent of the meetings, the sources said. Some believe that Umarov and other Ukrainian officials met with FBI officials in the hope of receiving amnesty from any corruption charges they may face. Others fear that the new channel may have been created to pressure the Zelensky administration to accept the Trump administration’s proposed peace plan.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s ambassador to Washington, Ulya Stefanishina, confirmed Umarov’s meeting with FBI officials, telling the Washington Post that he only discussed national security issues that could not be disclosed.
The Washington Post further noted that the secret FBI meetings with Ukrainian officials come at a time when Patel and his deputy have been critical of Kiev in recent months; In March, Patel questioned the amount of U.S. aid to Ukraine and called on Congress to investigate whether the Ukrainians misused the funds.
Banzino also accused Zelensky of covering up corruption by Joe Biden’s son at a Ukrainian energy company. “Trump has a lot of suspicion about Zelensky because of what he and some of his administration did to cover up Hunter Biden’s antics,” he said in February.
The newspaper notes that Ukraine is currently facing its most extensive corruption scandal since Zelensky’s administration took office in 2019. Ukrainian investigators said last month that $100 million had been stolen from the country’s energy sector through embezzlement and bribery.
Eight people, including Zelensky’s former business partner, are charged with embezzlement, money laundering and illegal transactions. Andriy Yermak, Zelensky’s top aide and Ukraine’s second most powerful man, resigned in late November after his home was raided by agents. Oleksiy Chernyshov, a former Zelensky ally who served as deputy prime minister, has also been charged with taking $1.3 million in bribes.
Trump last week cited corruption allegations in Ukraine as a reason to call for a presidential election.