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Zelenskyy Denies Election Motive as Tymoshenko Faces Vote-Buying Probe and Court Bail

Publicly released recordings anchor a pre-trial case with high bail and travel limits.

Overview

  • Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies charged Yulia Tymoshenko with offering unlawful benefits to lawmakers and released audio of her discussing about $10,000 per vote along with search footage.
  • Investigators’ video showed bundles of U.S. dollars in a Nova Poshta bag seized during searches of Batkivshchyna offices.
  • The High Anti-Corruption Court set bail at UAH 33.28 million and restricted Tymoshenko’s movements to Kyiv region, with more than UAH 13 million paid by Jan. 20 as she prepares an appeal.
  • President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the case is not connected to future elections and rejected parallels to Tymoshenko’s prosecution under Viktor Yanukovych.
  • Tymoshenko denies wrongdoing and calls the probe politically motivated, while analysts say her clash with the president could complicate key parliamentary votes during wartime and note the case sits within a wider vote-rigging inquiry targeting multiple MPs.