For years afterward, Soviet authorities cited the cooperation of some Ukrainian nationalists with the Nazis as a reason to demonize today’s democratically elected leaders of Ukraine. During World War II, some in the region welcomed and even cooperated with invading forces from Nazi Germany after years of Stalinist repression that included the “Holodomor” – a man-made famine believed to have killed more than 3 million Ukrainians. The Kharkiv branch has been detaining people who support the invasion, call for secession and claim that Ukrainian forces are shelling their own cities.Īllegations of collaborating with the enemy carry strong historic resonance in Ukraine. He spoke in a dark basement where the SBU had to move its operations after its building in central Kharkiv was shelled. “One of our key goals is to have no one stab our armed forces in the back,” said Roman Dudin, head of the Kharkiv branch of the SBU in an interview with The Associated Press. He refused to say how many people have been targeted nationwide. Zelenskyy has even stripped two SBU generals of their rank, accusing them of treason.Ī “registry of collaborators” is being compiled and will be released to the public, said Oleksiy Danilov, head of Ukraine’s Security Council. Some businessmen, civic and state officials and members of the military are among those who have gone over to the Russian side, and Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigations said more than 200 criminal cases on collaboration have been opened.
An eight-year conflict there between Moscow-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces had killed over 14,000 people even before this year’s invasion. Support for Moscow is more common among some Russian-speaking residents of the Donbas, an industrial region in the east. “The most important thing is that justice will be served inevitably.”Īlthough the Zelenskyy government has broad support, even among many Russian speakers, not all Ukrainians oppose the invasion. “Accountability for collaboration is inevitable, and whether it will happen tomorrow or the day after tomorrow is another question,” Zelenskyy said.