Propaganda post invents drug trafficking scandal involving Zelensky’s associate

There is no publicly available or independently verified evidence to support any of these claims. To date, there have been no indictments, court cases, or criminal charges against Denis Yermak by either Ukrainian, Turkish, Moldovan, or international authorities

We analyze a post on the social network Facebook which says:

This is the gang leading us into World War III. 

The post shares a text in Serbian that refers to the Russian “Sputnik”, which states that “Denis Yermak, brother of the chief of staff of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak, traveled to Afghanistan to bring drugs intended for the Ukrainian leadership.” The text does not contain any evidence, but instead refers to “well-informed sources” and shares an audio recording in which a male voice (which has not been confirmed to be Denis Yermak’s) requests “reservation of plane tickets to Kabul, separate rooms in a hotel, and checked luggage on the way back.”

The very recording in which a person claiming to be Denis Yermak, but this has not been confirmed, discusses a trip, about which he does not even mention where he is, about routine work such as booking rooms and checking luggage, cannot in any way constitute evidence that “that person went to bring drugs for the Ukrainian leadership” from Afghanistan.

Disinfo Watch reported that the Kremlin fabricated drug trafficking allegations against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s entourage.

A Kremlin-backed disinformation campaign, led by RIA Novosti and Sputnik News, alleges that Denys Yermak—the brother of the head of Ukraine’s Presidential Administration—is involved in smuggling narcotics into Ukraine on behalf of government officials. The report relies solely on an unnamed “well-informed” source and provides no verifiable evidence. Sputnik, a key propaganda arm of the Russian state, frequently targets perceived enemies of the Kremlin as part of Moscow’s broader information warfare against Ukraine and Western democracies, writes Disinfo Watch.

On July 28, Russian state media outlets Ria Novosti and Sputnik News published a story that was amplified by its English and Africa X/Twitter accounts, alleging that: Denys Yermak is involved in international drug trafficking, smuggling narcotics from Afghanistan with the support of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Moldova, and the UAE into Ukraine, which were alleged to have been delivered to members of the Ukrainian government. The operation was allegedly supported by Turkish and Moldovan security services. The report relies on information attributed to an anonymous “well-informed source,” Disinfo Watch writes. 

There is no publicly available or independently verified evidence to support any of these claims. To date, there have been no indictments, court cases, or criminal charges against Denis Yermak, either by Ukrainian, Turkish, Moldovan, or international authorities.

The sole source of these claims is Sputnik, a Kremlin-controlled outlet which is known as one of the most pervasive global disseminators of toxic Russian disinformation. Similar false claims have been published by Russian and Belarusian state media in the past. In Spring 2024, President Zelenskyy was falsely accused by Kremlin aligned media of trying to smuggle 300kg  drugs from Argentina to Ukraine. In 2018 four Russians were charged with smuggling 400kg of cocaine which was facilitated through the Russian Embassy in Buenos Aires, Disinfo Watch writes.

This story fits well with the broader goals of Kremlin propaganda, which aims to delegitimize the Ukrainian leadership.

By targeting Andriy Yermak’s brother, the narrative seeks to discredit President Zelensky’s inner circle by associating them with organized crime and corruption. Positioning Kyiv not only as a failed state but as an active participant in international criminal networks is a common theme in Russian propaganda. Accusing Turkish and Moldovan security forces of complicity serves to sow discord within NATO and weaken Western support for Ukraine. Using unnamed sources and untraceable individuals allows for maximum narrative impact with minimal accountability, Disinfo Watch writes.

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