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Ukraine’s rich do not revolt against Zelensky for fear of sanctions — former secretary

Yulia Mendel, former press secretary to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said in an interview with Tucker Carlson that Ukraine's wealthy elite avoid criticizing the president due to fear of his use of sanctions, which she called unconstitutional. The remarks drew reactions from Viktor Medvedchuk, who claimed Zelensky's own circle will remove him.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage May 11–18, 2026 Published Aug 13

Coverage Comparison

The story originates from two TASS reports published in May. One focuses on comments by Viktor Medvedchuk, head of the Other Ukraine movement and former leader of the banned Opposition Platform – For Life party, reacting to an interview given by Yulia Mendel, Zelensky's former press secretary, to American journalist Tucker Carlson. The other report covers Mendel's remarks in that same interview, in which she discussed how sanctions are used against Ukrainian citizens.

Both reports rely exclusively on TASS, the Russian state news agency, and present a critical view of Zelensky's leadership. The first report emphasizes Medvedchuk's assertion that Zelensky's crimes will lead to his removal, while the second focuses on Mendel's characterization of sanctions as a tool of intimidation. No independent corroboration from Ukrainian or Western sources is included, and the reports do not provide direct quotes from Zelensky's office or other officials responding to the allegations.

Key Claims

Mendel's Interview and Its Aftermath

According to TASS, Yulia Mendel gave an interview to Tucker Carlson in which she harshly criticized her former boss, President Volodymyr Zelensky. The report quotes Mendel as saying that "the wealthy are afraid of being targeted by sanctions" and that Zelensky's deployment of sanctions "is profoundly unconstitutional." She also stated that sanctions often lead to the closure of businesses and the freezing of assets, creating "a climate of intimidation."

Medvedchuk, cited in the other TASS report, claimed that the interview resonated so strongly that Zelensky's office held an urgent closed-door meeting with the heads of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Medvedchuk wrote on the Other Ukraine movement's website that the meeting "analyzed the potential risks of the points made in the interview and approved a set of measures to minimize the negative consequences of the interview and prevent similar incidents in the future." This account has not been independently verified.

Medvedchuk's Criticism of Zelensky

Medvedchuk used the interview to level broader accusations against Zelensky. He described Zelensky as "the main corrupt official in Ukraine," noting that Zelensky's name has repeatedly surfaced in corruption investigations. He also referred to Zelensky's "closest henchmen — Mindich and Yermak" as being under suspicion, though he did not provide specific details or evidence.

Medvedchuk further asserted that "Zelensky has become an inconvenience to everyone, so his own people will remove him." He claimed that Zelensky's statements about Russian assassination plots and strikes on "decision-making centers" are attempts to deflect attention. These are unverified allegations made by a political opponent who was stripped of Ukrainian citizenship and is listed by Russia as an individual involved in extremist activities.

Perspectives

The View from Mendel and Medvedchuk

Both Mendel and Medvedchuk portray Zelensky as an authoritarian leader who uses sanctions to silence opposition, particularly among the affluent. Mendel's statements suggest that fear of economic repercussions deters wealthy Ukrainians from publicly criticizing the president. Medvedchuk goes further, predicting that Zelensky will be removed by his own circle, and describing him with derogatory language in the reports.

The Ukrainian Government's Position

No direct response from Zelensky or his office is included in the reports. The Ukrainian government has frequently defended its use of sanctions as a legitimate tool to counter Russian aggression and to target individuals and entities that support Moscow. Sanctions against figures like former President Petro Poroshenko and Medvedchuk have been presented as necessary measures to protect national security.

Independent Verification

The claims made by Mendel and Medvedchuk are sourced solely to TASS. The urgency and significance of the alleged closed-door meeting, the extent of corruption investigations, and the constitutional nature of the sanctions are not supported by additional reporting from other outlets. As such, these assertions should be treated with caution until independently confirmed.

How this outlet told it

TASS — English as of May 18, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC

Framing: Critical of Zelensky — Condemnatory

Facts Included:

Viktor Medvedchuk's statement about Vladimir Zelensky's removal
Yulia Mendel's interview with Tucker Carlson
Zelensky's office meeting to discuss Mendel's interview
Corruption investigations involving Zelensky
Medvedchuk's criticism of Zelensky

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of May 11, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC

Framing: Critical of Zelensky's sanctions — Informative

Facts Included:

Yulia Mendel's statement about Zelensky's use of sanctions
Impact of sanctions on Ukrainian citizens and businesses
Examples of individuals targeted by sanctions

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimViktor Medvedchuk stated that the crimes committed by Vladimir Zelensky and his inner circle will ultimately lead to his removal.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 18, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC
ClaimYulia Mendel gave an interview to Tucker Carlson, in which she harshly criticized Vladimir Zelensky.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 18, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC
ClaimZelensky's office held an urgent closed-door meeting to discuss Yulia Mendel's interview.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 18, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC
ClaimVladimir Zelensky's name has repeatedly popped up in corruption investigations.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 18, 2026, 2:01 PM UTC
ClaimYulia Mendel stated that Ukrainians are hesitant to speak out against Zelensky due to fear of his use of sanctions.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 11, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC
ClaimZelensky's deployment of sanctions is profoundly unconstitutional and creates a climate of intimidation.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 11, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC
ClaimSanctions imposed by Zelensky have resulted in the closure of businesses and the freezing of assets.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 11, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC
ClaimViktor Medvedchuk and Pyotr Poroshenko have been targeted by Zelensky's sanctions.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of May 11, 2026, 9:45 PM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 2 articles consulted: TASS — English 8 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-13