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On August 14 (local time), a woman stands beside a large placard of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made with photos of missing soldiers at Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine. / AFP, Yonhap

Corruption investigations within Ukraine's political establishment are increasingly reaching toward President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, heightening tension within the leadership. Although Zelensky himself has not been directly implicated in the investigation, the Guardian and AP reported on the 19th (local time) that the affair marks yet another political crisis testing his leadership.

The presidential office said in a statement that day that it was dismissing Iryna Mudra, deputy head of the presidential office, with immediate effect. The dismissal, carried out by presidential decree, came right after local reports that the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) had searched Mudra's home in connection with alleged money laundering conspiracy.

NABU said the investigation targets an organized criminal conspiracy involving senior presidential office officials, current and former lawmakers, and top executives at state-owned banks. According to investigators, the individuals are suspected of laundering funds through a state bank to raise 150 million hryvnia (about 4.7 billion won) in bail money for former Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko, who faces corruption charges.

This is not the first corruption-related investigation to touch Zelensky's office. Timur Mindich, a former business partner of Zelensky's and co-founder of TV production company Kvartal 95, previously fled abroad while under investigation over alleged kickbacks tied to procurement at state nuclear operator Energoatom.

Andriy Yermak, Zelensky's former chief of staff and one of his closest confidants, also resigned immediately after a search of his premises and was later arrested on money laundering charges — part of a string of corruption allegations touching the president's inner circle.

Mykhailo Fedorov, recently dismissed as defense minister, said corruption has become pervasive under Zelensky's administration and that the president has failed to properly rein it in. "Corruption is only a symptom," he said. "The real problem lies much deeper." He also argued that Ukraine is undergoing a "structural governance crisis" and called for holding a presidential election even during wartime.

Zelensky has avoided directly addressing the calls for an election and has continued his usual schedule, but as investigators' scrutiny reaches inside his own office, both domestic and international pressure over his political leadership appears set to intensify further.

                                                                                                          Lee Jeong-eun