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US starts efforts to oust Zelensky, ex-Ukrainian PM believes

Nikolay Azarov noted the arrival of about 100 American auditors in Kiev to oversee the spending of funds allocated by Washington

MOSCOW, June 5. /TASS/. The United States has already written off Vladimir Zelensky and has launched serious efforts to remove him from power, former Ukrainian Prime Minister (2010-2014) Nikolay Azarov said.

"This is agony. It is quite clear that the Americans have dismissed him and are now working to remove him from power," Azarov stated on the Rossiya-24 TV channel.

He recalled the recent detention of Leonid Mindich, reported just a few days ago. According to Azarov, Mindich is a "well-known ‘purse’ of the head of Zelensky’s office, Andrey Yermak, and of Zelensky himself." The former prime minister noted that the detention was carried out not by the Prosecutor General’s Office, but by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. "The Americans established this body, fully staffing it with their own people, so it is subordinate only to them. They gave the command, and Mindich was detained while trying to cross the Romanian border," Azarov clarified.

He also noted the arrival of about 100 American auditors in Kiev to oversee the spending of funds allocated by Washington. "This is a serious point. Because <...> not Lindsey Graham (Republican, South Carolina, included in the Russian list of terrorists and extremists, who came to Kiev several times - TASS), but experts in US budget expenditure have arrived there <...>. All this would be impossible without a direct command from the White House," the former prime minister said.

According to him, this is a clear sign that "serious work has begun" to oust Zelensky. "If he does not want to leave, then he will be removed," Azarov continued. He added that the process will be gradual. "This procedure includes a range of stages, during which he will be persuaded that he can lose everything - both money and freedom," the former prime minister explained.

On June 3, Leonid Mindich, a relative of Timur Mindich, co-owner of the firm Kvartal 95 and Zelensky’s business partner, was reported to have been detained. According to local media, Mindich maintained close ties with Zelensky and is "one of Yermak’s key advisers."

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