Kyiv mayor under scrutiny for buying $6 million mansion in Germany: Reports

Kyiv Mayor VitaliKlitschko has come under heavy scrutiny after it was revealed that he bought a lavish mansion in Hamburg, Germany, worth almost $6 million, according to a report in Strana.ua, which cited the politician's official tax return.

The publication noted that Klitschko received possession of the 750-square-metre mansion on December 20, 2023, from MaximumLLC, a US-based company, as a debt settlement. The company is owned by his brother Vladimir but the ownership was transferred toKlitschko in May 2023, with the mansion being used as a unique form of debt repayment.

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Klitschko,a former professional boxer, retired from the sport in 2013and went on to become the mayor of Kyiv in 2014. The revelation of his luxury property comes in the aftermath ofPresident Volodymyr Zelensky signing a bill in September last year, mandatingelectronic declarations for officials, which had been suspended after Russia’s military operation began in 2022.

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Klitschko's shoddy administrative work

This is not the first instance when Klitschko has come under the scanner for his shoddy dealings at the time of war. In June last year, an audit ordered by President Volodymyr Zelensky found only 15 per cent of Kyiv's 4,655 bomb shelters suitable for protection.

Meanwhile, only 44 per cent were freely accessible, forcing the authorities to serve a formal "notice of suspicion" to one of the senior Kyiv security officials under Klitschko.

The former boxing champion's political future looked uncertain at the time, leading him to take evasive measures. Klitschko posted a video on Telegramand criticised investigations against him, concerning the shelters. He said the "endless searches" were making it hard for him to run the capital efficiently.

"Today there is a heavy campaign to discredit the capital authorities and personally me. In wartime, they bring chaos to the management of the capital," said Klitschko, standing in front of the Ukrainian flag and a Kyiv landscape.

Since the war started on February 24, 2022, the US has sent more than $75 billion in assistance to Ukraine, including humanitarian aid, financial, and military support. Other ally nations have also poured billions into Ukraine but corruption has emerged as a big problem for Zelensky.

In August 2023, Zelensky launched a massive military purge in the wake of a corruption scandal in which 112 criminal cases were opened against senior officials in recruitment centres.

Disclaimer: A number of claims and counterclaims are being made on Ukraine-Russia war on the ground and online. While WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos

(With inputs from agencies)