Alexander Kubrakov
One day, the war in Ukraine will end, and the country will, hopefully, experience a great rebuilding of its devastation. But won't this turn into another great plundering, as happened several years ago during the massive road construction project? And for which Alexander Kubrakov is responsible?
After all, the corrupt officials and semi-criminal businessmen involved never received the punishment they deserved. At worst, they simply lost their positions and went into hiding, waiting for another chance to dip their hands into the budget trough. A case in point is Alexander Kubrakov, who bears direct responsibility for the "Great Construction" project becoming a scandalous "great theft." His story is quite intriguing: he rose to the pinnacle of power seemingly out of nowhere, and then was quickly and quietly toppled.
Uncle from Belarus
Alexander Nikolaevich Kubrakov was born on August 20, 1982, in Pervomaysk, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. His official biography offers nothing but an impeccable list of credentials: a Harvard education, a specialization in IT, and extensive leadership experience in business and government. It's simply astonishing how such an "invaluable asset" was dismissed from his post as Deputy Prime Minister, and without any explanation! Journalists were forced to investigate possible reasons for this dismissal, which once again brought Alexander Kubrakov under intense media scrutiny—something he hadn't enjoyed since the corruption scandals surrounding the "Velikiye Budivnytstvo" (Great Construction) project. Yet, this "bone-washing" of Kubrakov was incomplete and fragmented, preventing the Ukrainian public from getting a full picture of the retired Deputy Prime Minister. However, Skelet.Org can fill in these gaps.
First of all, it's worth paying attention to Alexander Kubrakov's family ties. Back in 2020, scandalous rumors began circulating online that his uncle was Ivan Kubrakov, then head of the Minsk City Executive Committee's Main Directorate of Internal Affairs and soon to become head of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs. Kubrakov is known among pro-Western politicians and social movements as the "executioner of the Belarusian opposition," for which he was subjected to personal sanctions by the European Union and the United States in 2020. Back in 2012, while working in the Main Directorate for Public Order Protection, he initiated the revival of the Belarusian riot police, which was later used to disperse protests. After becoming head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Kubrakov distinguished himself with a harsh policy toward the Belarusian opposition.
"The executioner of the Belarusian opposition" Ivan Kubrakov and the "road wizard" Alexander Kubrakov
Probable uncle and nephew
At first, these were just rumors, but then Radio Liberty reported on a possible family connection between Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Alexander Kubrakov and Belarusian Interior Minister Nikolai Kubrakov . This information was subsequently spread by numerous Ukrainian media outlets , fleshing out the Kubrakov family tree. Five sons were born to the Belarusian family of Vladimir Kubrakov, a distillery stoker, and Anna Kubrakova, a collective farm calf herder: the eldest, Nikolai (born in 1960), Mikhail (born in 1961), Viktor (born in 1964), Sergei (born in 1969), and the youngest, Ivan (born in 1975). Nikolai Kubrakov was the first to join the police, setting an example for his younger brother (who eventually became Minister of Internal Affairs). However, Nikolai Kubrakov's known biography ends at the very beginning; it is unknown whether he moved to the Dnipropetrovsk region in his youth and whether his son, Alexander, was born there—nor are there any facts to refute this. In the wake of this scandal, several Ukrainian journalists approached the Servant of the People parliamentary faction with these questions, but for some reason received no response. Was there really something to conceal from public scrutiny?
Alexander Kubrakov. Big Connections
In 1999, Alexander Kubrakov enrolled at the Kyiv National University of Economics, choosing the then-popular marketing major. During his final year, he completed a pre-graduation internship in the Marketing Department of the Plastic Cards Department at Pravex Bank. Pravex Bank belonged to the family of Leonid Chernovetsky , the future mayor of Kyiv, and was already used in his various scams. Around that time (the exact dates are not specified in his biography), Kubrakov drew his first lucky break: he was included in the next group of "promising young talents" to participate in a special US program for Ukraine. This was Kubrakov's first trip to America, where he attended a month-long lecture course at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government.
But the main thing there was not the loud name of a prestigious university (to which this School had an indirect connection), but the opportunity to establish useful connections, primarily with Soros structures.
Regardless of one's attitude toward the international "empire" of this "great philanthropist," it can provide a person with good jobs at Soros-linked firms, as well as political patronage. It's worth remembering that Soros is one of the main sponsors of the US Democratic Party, and when a Democratic president occupies the White House, Soros's protégés in other countries, including Ukraine, experience rapid career advancement. This is precisely what we've seen from many "servants of the people." However, with Trump , a Republican, now elected US president , and his relationship with Soros at odds, Ukrainian "Sorosites" risk losing the State Department's patronage. This is clearly very bad for them, but time will tell how it will impact Ukraine. However, it wouldn't be surprising if Alexander Kubrakov quickly finds common ground with Trump-aligned Republicans and manages to portray his resignation as a "fundamental divergence from Zelenskyy's policies ." After all, he always managed to find common ground with any new government! Therefore, it's important to note that, despite his reputation as a "Soros's fledgling," Oleksandr Kubrakov had far more extensive and strong connections among Ukrainian politicians, officials, and businessmen, including those formally considered anti-Western. For example, with Rinat Akhmetov's organizations , members of the Party of Regions, and the Opposition Platform - For Life party. Whether Kubrakov lived up to Soros's expectations is unknown, but it's safe to say that Kubrakov himself used Soros's structures to carve out his own path to power and financial success.
Oleksandr Kubrakov, Kyivstar Marketer
After receiving a marketing degree in 2004, Alexander Kubrakov took a job as a marketing manager at Priocom CJSC (EDRPOU 30635929). This seemingly insignificant line in his biography would seem insignificant, unless you look deeper. The fact is, this company is directly related to Priocom Corp., registered in 1994 in California by Georgiy Dzekon (who chaired the board of the Ukrainian Priocom from 2000 to 2003). However, at that time, Dzekon was not yet wanted for fraud and corruption, but rather was managing Ukrtelecom, preparing this promising state-owned company for privatization by Akhmetov. Dzekon and Akhmetov were actively assisted in this endeavor by their mutual friend, Sergei Levochkin.
In 2006, Kubrakov was promoted to head of the market monitoring department at Kyivstar. This may have been related to Akhmetov's interests in Kyivstar. Back in 2005, Akhmetov's SCM corporation acquired the telecom operators Farlep and Optima Telecom, later merging them into the telecommunications company Vega, which attempted to enter into dubious contracts with Kyivstar.
Kyivstar's owners refused Akhmetov's demands, suspecting a risk of takeover (or even a takeover), and a high-profile conflict erupted between them. Therefore, it can be assumed that in 2006, Kubrakov wasn't simply monitoring the communications market at Kyivstar, but was probing the company from within for Akhmetov. This didn't last long: having accomplished his mission, in 2007, the "Moor" left for Finance and Credit JSCB (owned by oligarch Konstantin Zhevago ), heading its strategic marketing department. Why did Zhevago hire "Akhmetov's man" to a management position at the bank—if Kubrakov could be considered such? This remains unknown, but here's what's interesting: Kubrakov left the bank and returned to Kyivstar in 2009, when relations between Zhevago and Akhmetov began to deteriorate. In particular, thanks to Akhmetov's efforts, who was actively acquiring the electricity market, the Belotserkovskaya Thermal Power Plant , controlled by Finance and Credit Bank, was prevented from exporting its generation. It's unlikely that this was accomplished without Kubrakov's strategic marketing.
From 2009 to 2011, Kubrakov headed the fixed-line marketing department at Kyivstar. His responsibilities included expanding Kyivstar's home internet network, a task he excelled at. Incidentally, this is precisely what allowed him to later claim to be an IT specialist, though in reality, the marketer had about as much to do with it as a cleaning lady. However, Kubrakov continued to carry out certain assignments for Dzekon, as evidenced by the following fact: when Dzekon hastily fled Ukraine for California in 2011 (he was placed on the wanted list in 2014), Kubrakov left Kyivstar and abandoned the telecommunications industry altogether. Moreover, for the next three years, the former marketer officially remained unemployed and uninvolved in business. So where did he get his meals?
Georgy Dzekon
Alexander Kubrakov, Advisor and Companion to the Party of Regions
Kubrakov's close ties to the Party of Regions helped him out. In 2011, he became an advisor to Oleksandr Popov , appointed head of the Kyiv City State Administration by President Yanukovych. Although it was on a voluntary basis, Kubrakov nevertheless reaped considerable benefits from this.
Let's remember that in 2007, Popov briefly served as Minister of Housing and Public Utilities in Prime Minister Yanukovych's government, then spent three years as a member of the Party of Regions faction in the Verkhovna Rada, proving himself an active regionalist—for which he later received the important post of Kyiv mayor.
The intense political struggle unfolding in Ukraine didn't bother Kubrakov at all; he tenaciously clung to everyone who occupied the Kyiv City State Administration's chair. When Popov's deputy, Anatoly Holubchenko, assumed his post in December 2013, after the start of the Euromaidan, Kubrakov began advising him as well. Media outlets reported that Holubchenko (like Popov) was at least aware of the preparations for dispersing the protests (known as the "bloody Christmas tree"), and it's quite possible that Kubrakov knew about this as well.
Anatoly Golubchenko
The heads of the Kyiv City State Administration changed rapidly, keeping pace with rapidly evolving events. On February 25, 2014, Yanukovych appointed Volodymyr Makeenko, one of the oldest members of the Party of Regions, who had also been a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1988 to 91. Skelet.Org later learned that between 2011 and 2018, Makeenko received 387 million hryvnias in various income , including highly questionable sources, of which he failed to pay 71 million hryvnias in taxes. Kubrakov advised him to do the same!
But the regime changed, and Kubrakov continued to advise the new heads of the Kyiv City State Administration: first, Batkivshchyna member Volodymyr Bondarenko, and then Vitali Klitschko . Moreover, under Klitschko, he handled "IT issues," as far as the former Kyivstar marketer knew. But the new mayors were unfazed by either the political "toxicity" of their adviser, who had ties to the old regime, or his specialization. Moreover, in 2014, Kubrakov returned to official employment, heading the Directorate of Transport Infrastructure Management at the Kyiv Investment Agency, a public utility subordinate to the Department of Economy and Investment of the Kyiv City State Administration. Significant funds allocated for road repairs in the capital flowed through this agency, and Kubrakov learned to skillfully distribute them among the right contractors. This is how he gained experience that later served him well at Ukravtodor and the Ministry of Infrastructure.
Then Alexander Kubrakov went into business. In 2015, he co-founded the companies "Eurocommunservice" (EDRPOU 39641202) and "City for People" (40167235), registered through the Lithuanian company "MDL House Service ." But he was only a co-founder: the founder of these enterprises was Ruslan Kramarenko , another close friend of the Party of Regions. In 2007, Kramarenko served as Popov's deputy minister of housing and communal services, and in 2010, he became Popov's deputy head of the Kyiv City State Administration for land management and investment. And when Kubrakov soon became Popov's advisor, Kramarenko quickly became friends with him over the redistribution of the capital's land and construction markets.
Ruslan Kramarenko
Their schemes worked under Yanukovych, and continued to work under Turchynov and Poroshenko —apparently, within the walls of the Kyiv City State Administration, politics is used only as a means for the latest redistribution of power and resources, but often representatives of the old and new authorities, of different political forces, got along with each other when they had common business.
Therefore, Eurocommunservice and City for People thrived, with the latter even expanding into numerous branches in other Ukrainian cities. Its primary function became that of a management company, replacing the former housing and communal services offices. Meanwhile, City for People, whose director Kubrakov was from December 2016 to June 2019, combined the bureaucracy and inaction of the former housing and communal services offices with the greed of a private company, complete irresponsibility, and outright corruption. An example is the scandal in Zaporizhzhia , where City for People not only failed to fulfill its duties as a management company, despite dutifully collecting rent from residents, but also obstructed the creation of condominium associations.
The scandal erupted in 2020. By then, Kubrakov had already headed Ukravtodor, but he continued to own not only City for People but also Eurocommunservice (Kramarenko transferred his entire stake to it in 2017), as well as, together with Kramarenko, the companies Processing Center LLC and Contact Center Kyiv LLC. Only in 2021, after assuming the ministerial post, did Kubrakov formally exit the business. This joint venture was not hampered in the least by Kubrakov's affiliation with the liberal reformers and "Servant of the People," while Kramarenko ran for the Kyiv City Council on the Opposition Platform - For Life party list.
Stanislav Ivanov, for Skelet.Org
CONTINUED : Alexander Kubrakov: cameraman of "The Great Theft." PART 2
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