Ukraine

The Ukrainian Week|Dec 2013|Between Stability and the Instinct of Survival

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by Oles Oleksiyenko

[Note: This story from 2013 contains information about Louis Freeh’s client Andriy Kliuyev and Andriy Derkach, who has been reportedly feeding information to Louis Freeh’s longtime associate Rudy Giuliani.]

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MP Hennadiy Moskal, referring to secret documents received from his own sources, stated that prior to the start of the dispersal an encrypted telegram marked “secret” was sent to all oblasts other than Zakarpattia and Ivano-Frankivsk, ordering them to transfer their Berkut units to the disposition of the Interior Ministry, not the National Security and Defence Council or the Kyiv police. At the same time, opposition members leaked reports on interrogations of Popov, Sivkovych and Koriak, conducted on December 13. According to the reports, the three gave evidence that on the eve of the tragic events on the Maidan, Vitaliy Zakharchenko, the Minister of Internal Affairs, personally phoned him and ordered him to execute all the commands of Volodymyr Sivkovych. Oleksandr Popov stated that Andriy Kliuyev, National Defence and Security Council Secretary, had personally phoned him twice on November 29, to give him a similar order. The interrogation report for Popov suggests that it was Sivkovych who was coordinating the brutal battle. Interrogation reports for Sivkovych contain information that on the eve of the EuroMaidan operation he met with Andriy Derkach, who is known for lobbying Russian interests in Ukraine and has close ties with Viktor Medvedchuk. Vladimir Putin is the godfather for Medvedchuk’s daughter. Medvedchuk is considered to play a leading role in the implementation of Russian scenarios through Ukrainian top officials.

This hints at a clear Russian trail. Kliuyev, and his Deputies Sivkovych and Derkach, not to mention Medvedchuk, have long lobbied the Kremlin’s interests in Ukraine, related in one way or another to Soviet and later Russian special services. This trail had been visible before, first in the disruption of the Association Agreement with the EU in 2011 when Yulia tymoshenko put in jail; then in early 2013 when MPs visiting Tymoshenko at the Kachanivka prison were forced out right before the upcoming Ukraine-EU summit. According to the ex-Party of Regions’ MP Inna Bohoslovska, Andriy Kliuyev assured her that the Association Agreement would not be signed even when everything suggested the opposite outcome. Meanwhile, he was closely involved in the entire process as one of the key negotiators with EU Enlargement Commissioner Stephan Füle. Now, Füle refuses to meet with Kliuyev under any circumstances. Perhaps, he has a good grasp on the situation.

Earlier, a lot of information was leaked to the mass media about Andriy Kliuyev’s role in provocations of clashes during the May rally (see Anti-Fascism & the Yanukovych Regime at ukrainianweek.com) by the titushkas and beating of journalists in Kyiv. In other words, Andriy Kliuyev could well be a key figure in the implementation of Russian destabilization scenarios in Ukraine. However, he continues to hold a high state position, which allows him to coordinate the activities of all enforcement agencies. Therefore, the opposition has a good reason to insist on his removal from office and arrest.

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NY Times|July 2018|Manafort’s Trial Isn’t About Russia, but It Will Be in the Air

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[Note: Freeh has worked for Andriy Klyuyev and his brother Serhiy]

By Sharon LaFraniere

WASHINGTON — When they present their evidence in the financial fraud trial of Paul Manafort beginning this week, federal prosecutors have promised the judge, no government witness will even utter the word Russia.

Russia inevitably looms over the entire proceeding anyway.

Mr. Manafort, who was chairman of President Trump’s campaign, faces 18 charges of bank and tax fraud, largely stemming from his work as a political consultant in Ukraine and predating the campaign. The trial, scheduled to get underway on Tuesday morning with jury selection in federal court in Alexandria, Va., will not be about collusion or Russian disinformation, even if a stray reference to the country inevitably creeps in.

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In the trial that begins Tuesday, prosecutors have told Judge T. S. Ellis III of United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia that they will carefully steer clear of any political inferences that could prejudice the jury. But they do plan to show that a group of Ukrainian oligarchs financed his work to help elect Mr. Yanukovych and promote pro-Russian political interests.

They named four Ukrainian oligarchs: Rinat Akhmetov, Andriy Klyuyev, Borys Kolesnikov and Sergei Lyovochkin. Mr. Yanukovych appointed two of them to top government posts when he was elected president.

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Foreign Policy|July 2017|How Paul Manafort Helped Buy Washington Influence for Putin Crony

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[Note: Serhiy Klyuyev and his brother Andriy are (or were) Freeh clients]

In May 2013, the Republican lobbyist Vin Weber welcomed Serhiy Klyuyev, one of Ukraine’s most powerful political operatives, to Washington. For two days, Weber squired the member of parliament around Capitol Hill to spread the message that then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was leading his country on the path to reform and was seeking to embrace the West.

Klyuyev had come to Washington as part of a lobbying campaign carried out on behalf of an obscure Brussels-based think tank, the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine (ECFMU), which was founded by veterans of Yanukovych’s Party of Regions. On the recommendation of Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump’s former campaign chairman who worked as a political fixer for Yanukovych, ECFMU hired two powerhouse Washington lobbying firms, the Podesta Group and Mercury LLC.

Working with Manafort and his deputy, the two firms pushed Yanukovych’s agenda in Washington, but none at the time documented their work under the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) — passed to counter the influence of foreign propaganda on American politics. In the controversy that has ensued since Trump’s victory and allegations that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Podesta, Mercury, and Manafort’s firm have all conceded that their work benefited the Ukrainian government and have filed paperwork under FARA.

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On Capitol Hill, aides perceived the campaign as a run-of-the-mill lobbying effort. While in Washington, Klyuyev met with Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.), the co-founder of the Congressional Natural Gas Caucus, and later traveled to his Pennsylvania district, a hot spot of shale gas production. Ukraine at the time was eager to develop its own shale gas resources. “This kind of thing happens all the time,” said one Murphy aide.

Concerns over corruption, human rights, and governance had made European officials leery of propping the door wide open to Ukrainian EU membership. But the lobbyists’ message to Washington was, “Don’t let that get in the way of bringing Ukraine into the fold,” said one of the sources familiar with the lobbying effort.

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When he refused to sign the EU deal at a summit meeting in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Nov. 29, 2013, Ukrainians poured into city streets in protest, and the resulting popular uprising soon toppled Yanukovych and laid bare his regime’s fantastic corruption.

Documents revealed Klyuyev, the parliamentarian whom Weber had shepherded around Capitol Hill, as the owner of the president’s fantasyland estate, Mezhyhirya, complete with a private zoo, a collection of rare cars, and even a pirate ship. Ukrainian prosecutors have accused Klyuyev and his brother, who served as Yanukovych’s chief of staff, of fraud related to illegal privatizations and failing to repay loans in excess of $500 million.

Described by anti-corruption activists as one of the masterminds of Yanukovych’s kleptocracy, Klyuyev fled the country in 2015 before he could be arrested. That year, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Klyuyev’s brother, Andriy, for his role in raiding Ukrainian state coffers.

Serhiy Leshchenko, a crusading Ukrainian journalist and now a member of parliament, described the Klyuyev brothers as Yanukovych’s “most loyal and permanent allies.”

“They were architects of Yanukovych’s autocracy and widespread corruption,” Leshchenko said. “They were not only political partners but also in business with Yanukovych.”

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Kyiv Post|June 2015|After he disappears, ex-Yanukovych ally Klyuyev put on wanted list

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[Note: Serhiy Klyuyev is a Freeh client]

By Oleg Sukhov

The announcement was made after Klyuyev, who is accused of fraud and embezzlement, reportedly fled abroad after being stripped of parliamentary immunity. Ukrainian authorities have faced intense criticism for failing to arrest him and prevent his flight.

Critics say that the situation highlights a lack of progress in corruption cases against former Yanukovych allies, none of which has been sent to court so far.

Serhiy Klyuyev is a multimillionaire who, in September 2013, was the nominal owner of Mezhyhirya – the palatial 140-hectare, billion-dollar estate that Yanukovych occupied during his presidency. Authorities say the ex-president took over the property via a series of illegal transactions. Prosecutors accuse Serhiy Klyuyev of fraud, misappropriation of property, and abuse of power. Before disappearing, Klyuyev denied any wrongdoing.

A notice that Klyuyev was wanted initially appeared on the Interior Ministry’s website on June 8 but subsequently disappeared.

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On June 5, the EU helped Ukrainian authorities by extending sanctions against Klyuyev, former Justice Minister Olena Lukash and former Education and Science Minister Dmytro Tabachnyk until Oct. 6.

Serhiy Klyuev, a Donetsk native and a businessman, could not be reached by phone. He is the brother of former presidential Chief of Staff Andriy Klyuev, who is wanted in Ukraine for alleged embezzlement and participation in a crackdown on EuroMaidan protesters in November 2013.

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Radio Free Europe|July 2018|EU Court Clears Ex-Yanukovych Aide Of Past Sanctions, Upholds Current Measures Against Him

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[Note: Freeh and Sullivan worked for Andriy and Serhiy Kluyev’s holding company, Slav AG, dating back to at least 2014]

BRUSSELS — The European Union has retroactively canceled some sanctions against Andriy Klyuyev, the former head of the ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych’s administration, but did not lift sanctions against him that were prolonged in March.

The EU’s general court on July 11 ruled that restrictive measures imposed by the Brussels against Klyuyev for the period March 2017- March 2018 that consist of asset freezes should be annulled.

Those sanctions against Klyuyev and 12 others were extended in March 2018 for another year, and Klyuyev will not be completely removed from the sanctions list unless the extension of sanctions beyond March is also canceled.

Klyuyev has appealed the current measures and a ruling is expected later this year.

The court concluded that, since Klyuyev informed the European Council that Ukrainian criminal proceedings against him had been suspended before the renewal of the bloc’s restrictive measures, the council should have sought clarification on the issue from the Ukrainian authorities.

Klyuyev, Yanukovych, and 11 associates of the former president remain under EU sanctions for the misappropriation of Ukrainian state funds.

The EU imposed the asset freezes shortly after the collapse of Yanukovych’s government in February 2014.

Andriy’s brother, Serhiy Klyuyev, was removed from the list earlier this year. Serhiy, who was a businessman and lawmaker from Yanukovych’s Party of Regions, was the nominal owner of Mezhyhirya, the lavish Yanukovych residence outside Kyiv which is now a museum.

Ukraine World | March 2018 | Lost Treasures: How Ukraine Fights for the Return of Yanukovych Assets

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by Vitalii Rybak

[Note: See information about Freeh’s defense of the Kliuyev brothers here and here]

Serhiy Klyuyev, a Ukrainian MP from the close entourage of Viktor Yanukovych (also known as “family”), fled the country in 2014 after the Euromaidan protests. He did not leave empty-handed. According to the data of the Anti-corruption Action Centre he, together with his brother Andriy, stole over 15 billion hryvnias (5 billion euros) by taking loans from Ukrainian banks which were never returned and receiving financial support from the state. Based on the request by Ukraine’s, the EU Council has imposed sanctions against Klyuyev brothers, as well as 17 other officials from Yanukovych’s “family” on 5 March 2014.

Since then, the Prosecutor-General’s Office of Ukraine has been obliged to provide the EU court with sufficient evidence regarding this case. However, the judges questioned“the adequacy of the proof” provided by the Ukrainian side. Therefore, on 21 February 2018, the EU General Court cancelled sanctions imposed by the EU against Serhiy Klyuyev. Daria Kaleniuk, the head of Anti-Corruption Action Centre, is sure that the Ukrainian Prosecutor-General’s Office did nothing to save the case. “They have not even launched a special investigation regarding Serhiy Klyuyev,” she writes.

Additionally, this case sets a dangerous precedent. For the first time, ongoing sanctions against one of former officials from Yanukovych’s “family” have been dropped. All the others, who’s guilt Ukraine has not proven yet, could count on the very same. Therefore, the question arises: is Ukraine doing enough to recover the assets stolen by Viktor Yanukovych and his cronies?

The first major problem is that it is almost impossible to calculate the exact amount of money stolen from Ukraine during the four years of Yanukovych’s regime. The government has not figured this out in the four years from his escape. According to former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Oleh Mahnitskyi, back in 2014 Yanukovych  embezzled in excess of 100 billion dollars over the years of his presidency. However, in 2017 the Prosecutor-General’s Office of Ukraine (GPU) has given a “smaller” figure—40 billion dollars (which, nonetheless, is equal to the annual state  budget of Ukraine).

Unfortunately, civil society has little access to the data available to investigators. “When we ask the prosecutors how much money has been frozen, they either say that all the accounts of the Yanukovych “family” have been frozen, or say nothing due to the secrecy of the investigation,” Tetiana Shevchuk, a lawyer at the Anti-Corruption Action Centre, says in a commentary for UkraineWorld.

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Webster University | Jan 2015 | Investigating Alleged Misdeeds: Good Corporate Practice

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The Honorable Eugene R. Sullivan, the former Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals gave a Centennial Lecture, “Investigating Alleged Misdeeds: Good Corporate Practice” at the Webster Vienna Campus on Thursday, January 29. His remarks were based on case studies that he encountered at his current position as partner in the global judicial/law enforcement consulting firm, Freeh Group International Solutions (FGIS), founded by Louis J. Freeh, former director of the FBI. The firm conducts independent investigations in a variety of companies, and Sullivan enthralled the audience with case studies of alleged embezzlement and bribery by multi-billion dollar firms.

Judge Sullivan has a mantra that he believes that companies should follow when facing accusations of misdeeds, “1. Evaluate the Risk, 2. Find the Truth, and 3.Take Action”. Sullivan noted that external organizations should be engaged in order to investigate; internal investigations have neither credibility, nor are effective at finding the truth. Once the truth is found—should the accusations prove true—the firm must act immediately by taking responsibility and holding those involved accountable.

Sometimes the accusations prove to be unfounded, as Sullivan found in the case of the company Slav AG, which operates partly out of Vienna. Slav AG was accused in the media (see Der Standard, for example) of money laundering and of possible human rights violations due to ties with former Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovich, who was involved in the violent suppression of protestors in the 2014 Ukrainian Revolution. Sullivan, together with the investigation team found that these allegations were not true, but that the corporation did the right thing by requesting an external investigation.
[Note: After this was published, Serhiy Kliuyev, one of the co-owners of Slav AG, joined his brother Andriy as a fugitive in Russia, Andriy is on the US, UK, and EU sanctions lists, while Serhiy has been on various sanctions lists at various times since 2014. Both brothers were subject to EU & UK sanctions when Sullivan was defending their company.]

Sullivan also shared some stories from his illustrious past. He is a retired Federal Judge in Washington D.C. with over 16 years of appellate experience. Nominated by President Reagan and confirmed by the Senate, Judge Sullivan was installed as a Federal Judge in 1986. In 1990, President Bush named him the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals (AF). From 1982 until 1986, Judge Sullivan was the General Counsel of the National Reconnaissance Office (“NRO”, a then super-secret US satellite intelligence agency). Judge Sullivan also served in the White House on the legal defense team of President Nixon during the Watergate investigation in 1974. From 1974 to 1982, he was a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C. From 1982, until he became a Federal Judge in 1986, Judge Sullivan served in the Pentagon as the General Counsel and the Chief Ethics Officer of the U.S. Air Force after serving initially as the Deputy General Counsel.

At a reception following the Centennial Lecture, Judge Sullivan answered students’ questions over a glass of Austrian wine and hors d’oevres. Two of Sullivan’s colleagues from the investigation, Michael McCall—Associate Managing Director with Freeh Group and former FBI Special Agent— and Eugene R. Sullivan II—Judge Sullivan’s son and Lead Counsel during the investigation— were also there to meet with students. The reception was generously donated by SLAV AG.

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Ukranian Weekly | June 2015 | Another Yanukovych insider, Serhii Kliuyev, flees abroad

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KYIV – It’s been more than a year since former President Viktor Yanukovych fled Ukraine, and no one from his entourage has been arrested by the Ukrainian government, let alone prosecuted, for the murders during the Euro-Maidan protest. Never mind the billions alleged to have been pilfered in corruption schemes.

[Former Finance Minister Yurii Kobolov was arrested by Spanish police but has yet to be extradited to Ukraine. The government has seized his property in Ukraine.]
The latest Yanukovych insider to elude arrest was Serhii Kliuyev, who is widely believed to have fled the country within days after Ukraine’s Parliament voted on June 3 to strip him of his political immunity. By June 10, he was declared missing by Anton Gerashchenko, an advisor to the internal affairs minister, who confirmed a week later in Parliament that he fled to Russia through the occupied territories of Donbas.

The government’s failure to make arrests of key Yanukovych officials has infuriated critics, who believe that top state officials could have reached deals enabling their avoidance of detention and prosecution for their alleged crimes.

“I think that I’m not alone in suspecting that a non-aggression pact, a ring of protection exists between the current and past leadership of the country,” said Yegor Sobolyev, a national deputy with the Samopomich (Self-Reliance) party and chairman of the parliamentary Committee on Preventing and Countering Corruption.

The Kliuyev brothers – Serhii, 45, and Andrii, 50 – have long been political insiders, having earned their wealth in the chaotic 1990s by scooping up dozens of metallurgical, manufacturing and energy companies in their native Donbas. Their combined wealth was estimated at $323 million by the focus.ua news site in its annual survey published in April 2014 (though it was reported at more than twice that amount in previous years).

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His younger brother, Serhii, worked hard to avoid the same fate, but to no avail. In the days leading up to the fateful vote in the Verkhovna Rada, he was struggling to convince members of the parliamentary Rules Committee that the criminal charges that were being brought by the Procurator General’s Office were baseless and politically motivated.

That would have derailed the vote on his immunity.

At the committee’s May 28 meeting, Serhii Kliuyev’s American and Austrian lawyers presented findings of the Freeh Group, a firm launched by former FBI Director Louis Freeh and hired by Mr. Kliuyev.

The former FBI investigators determined that there was insufficient evidence to charge Mr. Kliuyev with a crime. Yet Mr. Kliuyev’s critics in Parliament said it was the firm’s investigators who didn’t have enough evidence and background in Ukrainian politics to reach their findings.

The parliamentary committee meeting had heated exchanges, reported the theinsider.ua news site, including more accusations of national deputies taking bribes.

Just two weeks earlier, National Deputy Oleh Liashko had claimed in the Rada that Mr. Kliuyev had offered him $50 million to ensure that his parliamentary faction would refrain from voting to strip him of a deputy’s political immunity.

Among those believed to have been bought off by Mr. Kliuyev, as reported by theinsider.ua, was the Rules Committee’s acting chair, Pavlo Pynzenyk of the People’s Front party, who resisted repeated efforts to make stripping Mr. Kliuyev’s immunity possible.
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More on the Ukranian oligarchs (including the Kliuyev brothers)