Ukraine Sends New Delegation to Washington Amid Turmoil as Zelensky Ousts Key Aide

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Ukraine plunged deeper into political and military turbulence on Saturday as President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that a team of senior negotiators was en route to the United States for urgent talks on Washington’s plan to end the war—just hours after he abruptly dismissed his powerful chief of staff and top negotiator, Andriy Yermak, in a sweeping corruption scandal.

Zelensky announced that Rustem Umerov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, is now leading the delegation. “Rustem Umerov, together with the team, is already on the way to the United States,” he wrote on X.

The visit comes at a delicate moment, as Kyiv fears the U.S. proposal may demand concessions to Moscow while Russian forces intensify assaults in the east.

The capital endured a night of Russian drone barrages from Friday into Saturday, killing one person, wounding around a dozen, and plunging large western districts into darkness.

“The western part of the capital is without electricity,” Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said, adding that repair crews were working nonstop.

Hours before the strikes, Zelensky stunned the country by removing Yermak, long seen as the second-most influential man in Ukraine and once nicknamed the “vice-president.”

Investigators from Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies had raided his apartment earlier in the day as part of a probe into an alleged $100-million kickback scheme in the strategic energy sector—an accusation he denies and says he is cooperating with authorities to clarify.

Zelensky announced the resignation in a video address: “The Office of the President of Ukraine will be reorganized.” Minutes later, he signed the decree dismissing Yermak.

The move delivered a political shockwave through Kyiv, where Yermak’s dominance over access to the president and his aggressive management style had long drawn criticism from opponents.

The European Commission welcomed the anti-corruption probe, saying it demonstrated the independence and growing effectiveness of Ukraine’s watchdog institutions.

Last summer, Zelensky was forced to reverse an attempt to curb those agencies’ powers after public protests and EU criticism.

With Yermak gone, Ukrainian officials say Rustem Umerov will now lead this weekend’s talks in Washington. Two senior Ukrainian officials confirmed the shift, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter.

The stakes are enormous. U.S. officials have been circulating a proposal to lay out steps toward ending the conflict—an initiative Kyiv worries could pressure Ukraine into territorial or political compromises.

Removing Yermak, who had become deeply unpopular and distrusted by two-thirds of Ukrainians according to a March 2025 Razumkov Centre poll, could strengthen Kyiv’s credibility in negotiations.

“Russia really wants Ukraine to make mistakes,” Zelensky warned, insisting that internal unity is essential as Moscow intensifies its offensive and air strikes batter critical infrastructure.

As political turmoil unfolded in Kyiv, the conflict expanded at sea. A major Russian oil terminal near Novorossiysk halted operations early Saturday after a naval drone strike severely damaged one of its mooring points, according to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC).

The terminal, a vital route that handles about one percent of global oil supplies and transports 80 percent of Kazakhstan’s exports, said operations would resume only after the drone threat was lifted.

Although the CPC did not attribute blame, Ukraine has repeatedly targeted Russian energy infrastructure in an effort to reduce the Kremlin’s war revenues.

A Ukrainian security source later told AFP that Kyiv’s Sea Baby naval drones were responsible for attacks on two sanctioned oil tankers—the Virat and the Kairos—off Turkey’s Black Sea coast late Friday.

Turkish authorities confirmed that both ships suffered explosions, with the Virat struck twice. No casualties were reported, though the Kairos burned for hours before its 25-member crew was evacuated.

Both tankers, flying Gambian flags, are under Western sanctions for covertly transporting Russian oil. Ankara’s transport ministry said initial assessments pointed to an “external impact,” including the possibility of drones or mines.

The incidents come amid heightened maritime risks. Since Russia’s war in Ukraine, drifting sea mines have repeatedly threatened shipping routes, prompting Turkey, Bulgaria, and Romania to form a NATO-backed mine countermeasures group in 2024.