Steve Cortes, founder of the League of American Workers, said that peace in Ukraine now appears close and argued that elections should proceed amid allegations of corruption surrounding President Zelensky and his inner circle. The statement was made on X.
“Peace seems imminent in Ukraine, thanks to Trump,” said Cortes. “Elections there must happen — as Zelensky’s corruption scandal reaches the highest levels of his inner circle. He threw the lead detective in jail! The honest cop.”
A $100 million corruption scandal in Ukraine’s state nuclear energy sector has intensified scrutiny of President Volodymyr Zelensky and his associates just as contentious peace ideas and future elections are being debated. According to AP News and other outlets, anti-corruption agencies uncovered a scheme involving Energoatom contracts, leading to raids, arrests, and the dismissal of the energy and justice ministers. Critics warn that the scandal could weaken Kyiv’s leverage in any negotiations and erode trust both domestically and with Western allies.
Ukrainians consistently perceive corruption as pervasive in their government. In 2025, 85% said corruption is widespread, essentially unchanged from an 84% average between 2007 and 2024. According to Gallup polling summarized in the Corruption in Ukraine entry on Wikipedia, these figures place Ukraine among the countries with the highest perceived government corruption globally.
Ukraine’s standing in global anti-corruption indices has improved but remains low. According to Ukraine’s official information portal summarizing Transparency International’s data, the country has advanced 39 places in the Corruption Perceptions Index since 2013 when it ranked 144th out of 177; by 2023–2024 it scored about 35–36/100 points and ranked around 104–105th out of 180 countries, showing gradual progress yet persistent serious corruption concerns.
Cortes is also a senior political advisor to CatholicVote. He is a former senior advisor to President Trump and JD Vance, as well as a commentator for Fox News and CNN. Cortes regularly releases documentaries and columns at cortesinvestigates.com.
