BES Commission publishes a document of the Cabinet of Ministers on the refusal to appoint Tsyvinsky
9 July 2025 10:24
The competition commission for the selection of the director of the Bureau of Economic Security of Ukraine (BES) has received an official notification from the Cabinet of Ministers of the decision not to appoint the winner of the competition, Oleksandr Tsyvinsky. The commission published the document on its Facebook page,
“Given the high level of public interest in this issue and our commitment to transparency, we are publishing the document in full,” the statement reads.
In an excerpt from the minutes dated July 7, the government decided to reject the draft Cabinet of Ministers’ order to appoint Tsyvinsky as BES director. It noted that the decision was made taking into account information from the SBU letter.
The Prime Minister entrusted Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna with the task of informing international and foreign organizations that provided Ukraine with international technical assistance in the field of preventing and combating corruption about the relevant decision.
“The competition commission is currently reviewing its (the document’s – Ed.) content and will separately report on its position,” the commission commented on the extract from the minutes.
What is known about the appointment of the BES director
In June, the competition commission finally chose the winner of the competition for the position of the BES director. Before that, since April 2023, the bureau was headed by temporary managers who changed several times during this period.
Ukraine’s international partners insisted on reforming the BES. The ambassadors of the Group of 7 countries voiced key requirements to the Speaker of the Parliament, the Prime Minister and the Head of the Presidential Office, including a transparent open competition for the position of the new BES director.
The Commission chose Oleksandr Tsyvynskyi, a current NABU detective who led the Clean City investigation, as the winner. Tsyvynskyi is the head of the 3rd Detective Unit of the 2nd Main Department of the NABU.
His candidacy was supported by three representatives of international organizations. Instead, government representatives chose other candidates. During the competition, the SBU expressed reservations about Tsyvynskyi’s candidacy, pointing out that his father has a Russian passport. The detective himself assured that he had not communicated with his relative for years.
As reported by
Who is Oleksandr Tsyvinsky?
Oleksandr Tsyvynskyi has a law degree and extensive experience in law enforcement. He is originally from Lviv region.
Tsyvynskyi is a current detective at the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and has been working there since 2015.
He is in charge of the 3rd Detective Unit of the 2nd Main Department of the NABU.
He took part in the high-profile investigation into corruption in the construction sector of Kyiv, “Clean City”.
Tsyvinsky said he does not communicate with his father, who lives in Russia.
The Anti-Corruption Action Center claims that he has passed all the checks necessary for access to state secrets.
Scandal with the competition for the head of the BES
Representatives of the state in the competition commission for the position of the head of the Bureau of Economic Security (BES) disrupted the last stage of the competition, namely the interview with the candidates, citing the need for additional verification by the Security Service of Ukraine.
Although all the candidates passed the special check on May 15, according to Yuriy Ponomarenko, the state representative in the commission, information emerged at the last minute that at least three candidates may have ties to Russia.
“Now, when the very survival of Ukrainian statehood is at stake, we must be as careful as possible. Only the Security Service of Ukraine can be the only authoritative source of verification of information about possible ties between the candidates and Russia,” he said during the last meeting.
Martyna Bohuslavets, head of the Anti-Corruption Center “Mezha”, said that the competition for the post of head of the Bureau of Economic Security (BES) on June 9 was finally disrupted by the President’s office. According to her, three government members of the competition commission from Ukraine did not attend the meeting and disrupted it due to the lack of quorum: Yuriy Ponomarenko from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Oleh Hilyaka from the Ministry of Economy, and Tetiana Matselyk from the Ministry of Finance.
She also points out that the competition for the position of BES director is our country’s obligation to the International Monetary Fund and that Ukraine could lose five billion dollars in support if it fails to fulfill its obligations .
Bohuslavets emphasizes that the commission has very little time left, as the agreement with the IMF stipulates that the competition should be completed by the end of July this year.
“Funding for the Commission’s activities is also limited, and the situation threatens to completely disrupt the reset of the BES and damage Ukraine’s financial capacity,” she adds.
The Anti-Corruption Center “Mezha” handed over a laptop with information in English on the disruption of the competition to 30 international partners, including the G7.
