Andrey Derkach
Ukrainian politics needs to rid itself of characters like Andriy Derkach – this innocent politician, in our view, combines all the qualities that evoke the utmost repulsion in ordinary citizens.
It would be difficult to find a more ideal candidate to use as an example to justify the need for lustration of political personnel, which the major political players must carry out if they want to continue to enjoy the trust of Ukrainians.
In our view, Derkach is, of course, innocent of anything other than being Derkach. We do not wish, nor do we intend, to accuse him of anything or leak any incriminating evidence against him. Our goal, not without civic fervor, is to list as accurately and succinctly as possible those facts from Derkach's biography that make him an ideal candidate for lustration. Unfortunately, Derkach's personality is so multifaceted and enigmatic that our journalistic investigation will stretch over no less than three articles. And while in the first we discussed Derkach the politician—trained by Kuchma and betraying him, handpicked by Moroz and betraying him, handpicked by Yanukovych and betraying even him, for such inept and brazen theft of Energoatom was tantamount to treason—today we will discuss Derkach the man.
In the circle of people described by political journalists with the meticulous care of entomologists, being human means something quite different from being human as ordinary Ukrainians understand it. It's not about planting a tree, building a house, raising a son, or, even more so, about the immortal words "He lived a long time and understood a lot" on his grave. In this circle of people, they measure themselves by other things—by regalia. Diplomas, academic degrees, books written, honorary titles, and orders. And here, despite his relatively young age, Andriy Derkach is also an ideal representative.
Let's start with the fact that Andriy Derkach holds six higher education degrees. He studies nonstop. Although his official biography lists only a law degree and a military degree—presumably, he actually attended the FSB Academy—Derkach is the proud owner of four additional diplomas.
The ideal candidate for lustration must have more than one higher education degree, obtained without interrupting political work.
Despite having a wide range of options for continuing his academic studies, Andriy Derkach defended his PhD thesis as a lawyer. The interesting thing is that it was on nuclear and radiation safety, and he defended it in March 2008.
Derkach's attitude toward nuclear energy was widely publicized when he was appointed to his position at Energoatom. Nuclear workers were outraged that the industry's leadership had been taken over by someone with no experience in the field, nor even the slightest theoretical knowledge of what nuclear energy is and how to use it. As we can see, it took just a year for a man with six university degrees to grasp the atom and even defend a dissertation on the subject.
Derkach's dissertation was carefully read by the respected "Zerkalo Nedeli," which couldn't resist a detailed, scholarly analysis on the occasion. ZN immediately and accurately identified Derkach's motivation: "Andriy Derkach, president of the National Nuclear Energy Generating Company (NAEK) Energoatom and general director of the state-owned concern Ukratomprom, is haunted by the laurels of 'professor' Yanukovych, economics candidate and 'emergency' minister N. Shufrych, and others like them. And he decided that to feel secure in his place on the party lists of renowned regional scientists, and while enjoying (still) ample financial resources, he must seize the unique opportunity to join their ranks."
"Out of long-standing scientific habit, I immediately inquire about the candidate's list of publications on the dissertation topic. There are only five of them, three of which are research articles in specialized VAK-certified journals, all published in 2006. Frankly, it's not much. And then there's the modest phrase in the abstract: 'The author's scientific and journalistic publications on the legal framework for the development of nuclear energy are posted on the website...' (the address of the candidate's personal website is provided). Upon visiting the website, it's easy to see that virtually all of the author's "scientific and journalistic" articles were published in the newspaper 'Kyiv Telegraph,' which our candidate owns. The situation is exactly like the proverb: 'I drink myself, I walk myself, I make my own bed, I lie myself...'" the publication writes.
"The most amusing section of the dissertation abstract for specialists is the scientific novelty of our hero's results. Sorry for the copious quoting, but what can I do? I want you to read this masterpiece too. It turns out that this work "is the first independent complex study dedicated to theoretical and practical problems of nuclear and radiation safety control." End of quote." But the funniest thing about Derkach's dissertation, according to Zerkalo Nedeli, is this: "Among the author's personal contributions to scientific novelty are the clarification of the concepts of 'nuclear safety' and 'radiation safety' and the justification for the need to align the concepts of 'nuclear installation,' 'nuclear material,' and 'nuclear damage' with the 'attributes of international legal acts.'"
In other words, Derkach not only bought himself an academic degree, but also took credit for introducing into everyday life the scientific terminology that everyone has been using successfully for a long time.
The ideal candidate for lustration must have an academic degree obtained while working in political profession.
Besides his dissertation and six diplomas, Andriy Derkach can boast of being a writer. He's not very well known, but he's quite prolific, even for his 41 years. He's written several books, with titles including "Glukhov—the Hetman's Capital," "Ukraine and Russia: The Test of Friendship," and "Sufficient Isolationism." Derkach also has a book with the enigmatic title "The Endlessly Lasting Present: Ukraine: 4 Years of the Journey."
These books, which undoubtedly no one has ever read, remain unclear as to who wrote them or when. It's certainly not Derkach himself. Indirect confirmation of this was provided by renowned political scientist Dmytro Vydrin. As Ukrainska Pravda writes: "Andriy Leonidovych is a writer; he penned the book 'Glukhov—the Hetman's Capital,' and is also the co-author of the monographs 'Ukraine—Russia: 'The Test of Friendship' and 'The Endlessly Lasting Present: Ukraine: Four Years of the Journey.'" Later, Dmytro Vydrin would unknowingly reveal a small secret in Zerkalo Nedeli—he would recall that an acquaintance of his "from the presidential administration published a very interesting book." The book was written by subordinates, and they gave it the wonderful title: 'The Endlessly Lasting Present.'"
The profile of an ideal candidate for lustration includes more than one pretentious book, written without interrupting political work.
Incidentally, in the same article dedicated to Andriy Derkach's website, Ukrainska Pravda mocks his other accolades: "He is the honorary president of the Telegraph information and publishing group, which includes the newspapers Kyivsky Telegraf, Kharkivsky Telegraf, Odessky Telegraf, Pridneprovsky Telegraf, the online publication Versii.com, TelegrafUA.com, and Radio-Era. He is also the chairman of the artistic council of the Era TV and Radio Company. Among his "ridiculous" positions, Derkach is also the co-chairman of the Our Future Foundation and the honorary president of the Ukrainian Orienteering Federation."
However, Derkach is mocked even more strongly by his own website, since only from the official biography we can learn that “Andriy Derkach is a holder of the Order of Merit, III degree. Awarded with the Order of Merit for the Italian Republic at the level of Commander. For his contribution to the revival of Orthodox spirituality, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church awarded Andriy Derkach with the highest church orders - St. Prince Volodymyr, St. Nestor the Chronicler, St. Anthony and Theodosius of the Pechersk."
So, the iconostasis on Derkach's chest is also quite good, not the most shabby. The Order of Nestor the Chronicler is especially impressive, of course.
Andriy Derkach's political and personal qualities could be listed endlessly, isolating from them the criteria by which he deserves lustration. Unfortunately, these qualities are commonplace among most members of Ukraine's political elite, and there's nothing unique about them. Similarly, there's nothing unique about the business record of our ideal candidate for lustration—corruption, criminal connections, arms trafficking, reselling "freedom of speech." But here, the specifics are crucial—business accusations are difficult to level broadly, so, willy-nilly, we'll have to cite specific incriminating evidence.
Andriy Derkach and his father, former SBU head Leonid Derkach, were accused of large-scale arms trafficking, including supplying weapons to terrorists. Importantly, however, this isn't the only thing—the Derkachs always put their own interests above those of the state: for example, Ukrainian peacekeepers didn't go to Liberia in 2003 precisely because the Derkachs feared evidence of their involvement in arms trafficking.
Russian media reported at the time: "A mission beneficial to Ukraine was blocked." According to information from the Verkhovna Rada, it was the Derkachs who secured the necessary number of MPs to boycott the presidential initiative. What's the intrigue? The elder Derkach resigned as head of the Security Service of Ukraine after the Defense Ministry's Main Intelligence Directorate revealed the Derkach family's involvement in the illegal supply of weapons to several Asian and African countries, specifically Liberia. The arms scandal was hushed up at the time. Now, however, such an outcome is unlikely, and the Derkachs understand this. If Ukrainian weapons do indeed end up in Liberia, the Main Intelligence Directorate, which reports to Yevhen Marchuk, will be very interested in tracing their route. The crux of the matter is that it was the Derkachs who once launched a campaign against Marchuk, accusing him of illegal arms trafficking. But the court found their charges unfounded. Furthermore, businessman and crime boss Leonid Wulf is serving a sentence in Israel. According to the website "Ukraina Kriminalnaya," he is already ready to testify about the activities of several Ukrainian oligarchs, including the Derkach brothers. According to Wolf, Leonid Derkach, together with Vadim Rabinovich, was involved in the illegal supply of weapons to all conflict zones, from the Balkans to Iraq. According to Wolf, "there is information that they supplied small arms and heavy weapons to the Taliban and Al-Qaeda." In other words, if traces of their activities are discovered in Liberia, an international scandal is inevitable. Of course, it will not be only Ukrainian law enforcement agencies that will investigate it."
Back in 2001, when the Italians arrested Oleksandr Zhukov, an Odessa resident charged with 18 counts of illegal arms trafficking, Kyiv newspapers reported that prominent politician Andriy Derkach, son of former head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Leonid Derkach and a former adviser to President Kuchma on foreign economic issues, had pressured Mr. Zhukov to use his company, Sintez, as an intermediary between the state-owned arms company Progress and the Ukrainian-Panamanian joint venture Global Technologies Int. This joint venture was repeatedly characterized in SBU reports as a "company violating trade rules on the international arms market."
The profile of an ideal candidate for lustration includes involvement in illegal activities that threaten Ukraine with international scandals. Also, lobbying for personal interests at the expense of state interests.
Andriy Derkach is a worthy son of his father. For example, in 1999, Leonid Derkach, then head of the SBU, said the following about Semyon Mogilevich, the leader of the international Russian mafia, in an interview with Zerkalo Nedeli: "I have information about what's going on around Mogilevich. They're trying to involve us in the investigation of his activities. But there's not a single incident on Ukrainian territory where this man or his accomplices have broken the law." A curious position from the head of the SBU just before the attempt to arrest Mogilevich in the United States? Especially considering that two years earlier, the Ministry of Defense Intelligence had received a letter from the Ministry of Internal Affairs' Organized Crime Control Department, dated November 24, 1997, signed by V. Sheremeta, First Deputy Head of the SBU's Directorate for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime, thanking the US FBI representative in Ukraine "for his cooperation in the case of S. Mogilevich's criminal activity..."?!
However, as sources claim, “there is no information about Andrey Derkach’s criminal connections and his meetings with AngertThere have long been rumors in Odessa about Zhukov and Leonid Minin (Brodsky). These connections and partnerships in organized crime are known to intelligence agencies in many countries. The Israeli National Police documented, using operational audio and video, a meeting in December 1999 at V. Rabinovich's villa in Israel between Andriy Derkach, a member of the Ukrainian parliamentary delegation from the Labor Ukraine faction, and Alexander Angert.
Background: Former Ukrainian citizen Oleksandr Anatolyevich Angert, born December 24, 1955, in Odessa, nicknamed "Angel." He currently resides in the United Kingdom and is the subject of investigations by the Belgian Gendarmerie, Austrian police, the Geneva Police Department of Switzerland, and the US FBI. He is also an intelligence target of the UK National Criminal Intelligence Service, the Secret Intelligence Service of the British Foreign Office, and the counterintelligence service of the Italian Ministry of Defense. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, in 1980, Angert was convicted by the Odessa Regional Court of committing crimes under Articles 93 and 142 of the Criminal Code of the Ukrainian SSR (premeditated murder with aggravating circumstances, robbery) and sentenced to death by firing squad. However, the sentence was commuted to 15 years' imprisonment in a maximum-security penal colony. He was released early in 1991.
But as for the criminal connections, here's a diagram drawn up back in 2001 that gives an idea of the scale of the Derkach empire (click on the image to enlarge it):
new
The ideal candidate for lustration has a criminal record.
Needless to say, Andriy Derkach approached the management of Energoatom as an experienced man—his criminal record, unlike his higher education, was not fictitious, but rather truly extensive. It's worth noting, parenthetically, that it would have been foolish for a man with such experience to embezzle so brazenly at Energoatom.
So, in early June of this year, the Control and Audit Department (CAD) completed its audit of Energoatom's business operations. Auditors found that the state-owned company was managing its funds ineffectively. Its warehouses contained materials and equipment purchased since 2001, valued at 5 billion hryvnias.
"The material assets in the warehouses represent a centralized stockpile accumulated over several years (materials and equipment used in servicing nuclear power plant units, as reported by the newspaper DELO)," explains Andriy Derkach, former head of the state-owned company and a Party of Regions MP. He claims Energoatom planned to sell off the excess assets. This would have resolved its working capital shortage, which, according to the KRU press service, amounts to 1 billion hryvnias.
However, Derkach's plans fell through. Energoatom encountered difficulties revaluing its assets. Therefore, the state-owned company considered handing over the materials to the State Tax Inspectorate. This would allow the company to pay off its debt to the agency, which, according to the Party of Regions member, amounts to 1,7 billion hryvnias. "We wanted the tax office to conduct its own assessment of this property and decide on its sale," the former executive explained. However, certain legal provisions prevented such a transaction.
However, this was reported by the Delo newspaper, while Tymoshenko took a slightly different approach at a press conference with the head of the Control and Audit Office. We quote Kommersant: "The audit reports revealed colossal, large-scale, simply unheard-of abuses committed by the leadership team appointed by the Party of Regions and the Socialists, a team of massive kleptomaniacs," the prime minister stated in her opening remarks, estimating the damage to the budget at 10,2 billion hryvnias.
Mykola Sivulsky, head of the State Control Committee, explained to Kommersant that UAH 3,18 billion of this amount was classified as "direct damage," which is subject to criminal liability. At Energoatom, the main focus of attention was the company's acting president, Nikita Konstantinov, who had been dismissed by the previous government. According to the State Control Committee, during his short tenure, he signed an order writing off UAH 750 million in energy market debt. However, after the issue was discussed at a Cabinet meeting, Mr. Sivulsky clarified his position, blaming Mr. Konstantinov's predecessor, Andriy Derkach, now a member of parliament from the Party of Regions, for the violations at Energoatom.
The profile of an ideal candidate for lustration: corruption.
In concluding our journalistic investigation, we remind the reader that Andriy Derkach is not the target of our anger and outrage. We are simply trying to draw public attention to the cadres who comprise the Ukrainian political system today, and we believe lustration, or rather, a literal cleansing, is absolutely necessary. We chose Derkach as our example because, of all the other possible candidates, he possesses all and every single quality that merits lustration.
"A scumbag of the highest order," as Leonid Kuchma would say.
Maxim Stoleshnikov, Ivan Stepanov, vsesmi.com.ua
Subscribe to our channels on Telegram, Facebook , Twitter , VK - Only new faces from the SKLEP section!