---
title: "The Fall of 'Carthage': How Corruption Scandals and Security Service In-fighting Are Shaking Zelensky's Power"
description: "Operation 'Carthage' by NABU and SAP on the 'shielding' of call centers led to Prosecutor General Khrachenko's resignation request. Against the backdrop of scandals in the President's Office and the SBU–GUR conflict, the authorities acknowledge a breakdown of the state machinery."
date: 2026-09-10T04:06:39.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/fall-of-carthage-corruption-scandales-shake-ukraines-power
tags: [ukraine, corruption, nabu, sap, prosecutor-general, zelensky, politics]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# The Fall of 'Carthage': How Corruption Scandals and Security Service In-fighting Are Shaking Zelensky's Power

![Collage: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Oleksandr Daniluk, and Yulia Zatyagrina against a backdrop of corruption and intelligence service symbols](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/10/padenie-karfagena-skandaly-rasstrasyayut-vlast-ukrainy/padenie-karfagena-skandaly-rasstrasyayut-vlast-ukrainy-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- As part of Operation 'Carthage,' NABU and SAP released a case on the 'shielding' of call centers linked to the Office of the Prosecutor General.
- Prosecutor General Ruslan Khrachenko announced his resignation after a meeting at Bankova; the Rada is expected to formalize the dismissal next week.
- Against the backdrop of scandals around former Deputy Head of the President's Office Irina Mudra and the SBU–GUR conflict at Beresnyaky, sources in the authorities speak of a breakdown of the state machinery.
- The candidate for the new Prosecutor General has not been determined: Zelensky left on visits to Norway and Canada, and the issue has been put on pause.

In recent weeks, the Ukrainian authorities have been shaken by a series of internal scandals which, according to sources in the ruling team, have brought the state machinery close to a breakdown. No sooner had the resonant episode involving former Deputy Head of the President's Office, Irina Mudra, died down than the anti-corruption bodies moved to larger-scale action: as part of Operation 'Carthage,' NABU and SAP released materials from a case on the 'shielding' of call centers linked to staff of the Office of the Prosecutor General. The outcome was Prosecutor General Ruslan Khrachenko's resignation request, which the Verkhovna Rada is expected to formalize next week.

### Operation 'Carthage' and Khrachenko's Resignation

According to RBC-Ukraine, Khrachenko's decision to actively defend himself after Operation 'Carthage' was announced, and his reluctance to resign, were his own initiative. However, as an informed source explained, even a couple of days of such defense 'looked like a defense on behalf of the entire vertical of power, which was coming under attack.' This is exactly what he was told at the Monday meeting at Bankova, after which the Prosecutor General announced his departure. It is noted that the heads of NABU and SAP visited Bankova just before the conversation between the president and the Prosecutor General.

### Political Trail and the 'Vertical'

In Vladimir Zelensky's circle, it is believed that the anti-corruption bodies had been 'grinding their teeth' on Khrachenko since last July, considering him one of the key ideologues of the then-attack on NABU and SAP. According to this version, 'Carthage' was brought down right now because the bodies had completed gathering the evidentiary base and 'presentably packaged' it for the public. A source in Zelensky's team emphasized: if the case is limited to the prosecutor's office and Khrachenko alone, then it will carry 'a clear political tinge,' but if they start detaining other security officials — the police, GBR, SBU — then the goal is truly to 'crush' the entire call-center industry.

### Security Service In-fighting and the Bill Against Fraudsters

Between two major NABU stories came no less resonant episode — a conflict between the SBU and the GUR at Beresnyaky in Kyiv. Although these events are not generally connected, sources in the authorities acknowledge that there is a feeling that the state machinery has 'gone off the rails.' In parallel, the president recently submitted a bill aimed at banning any activity related to the work of phone fraudsters; from the outside this could have looked like hasty 'anti-crisis measures,' however a source in Zelensky's team insists that this is simply a coincidence.

### Contradictory Data

There are a number of inconsistencies in the statements of the parties and the assessments of sources. First, regarding the bill against phone fraudsters: some observers interpret it as a reaction to the scandal and an 'anti-crisis' measure, while a source in the president's circle insists that this is a coincidence and the document was prepared independently. Second, assessments of the nature of Operation 'Carthage' diverge: some speak of pure anti-corruption work, others of a 'political tinge' if the case is limited to Khrachenko alone. Third, the versions of the Prosecutor General's own motivation do not match: according to one, his defense was a personal initiative, according to the other — it was perceived as a defense of the entire vertical of power, which became the reason for the demand for his resignation. Finally, the text mentions that over the past year NABU and SAP have de facto 'removed from office' the second man in the state, Andriy Yermak, which raises the question of the limits of their actual influence in the system.

### What's Next: Searching for a New Prosecutor General

At the time of publication, according to several sources in the authorities, even a long list of candidates to replace Khrachenko has not been formed: having sorted out 'Carthage,' Zelensky left on visits to Norway and Canada, and until his return the issue has been put on pause. The resignation has also caused confusion among the deputies: MPs fear that the new Prosecutor General will sign indictments 'without looking' as submitted by SAP, and therefore an idea is circulating in parliament that the successor should be 'one of their own,' that is, from among the people's deputies. At the same time, as sources note, it is unclear whether suitable candidates will be found among the deputies.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [The Fall of 'Carthage'. How Corruption and Scandales Are Shaking Zelensky's Power](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/padinnya-karfagenu-k-koruptsiya-ta-skandali-1788989187.html) - Основной источник: ход операции «Карфаген», отставка Кравченко, скандал с И. Мудрой, конфликт СБУ/ГУР, законопроект, поиск нового генпрокурора. Политические оценки — от анонимных источников.
- [Operation 'Carthage': NABU and SAP Released Details of the Case on the 'Shielding' of Call Centers (PHOTO)](https://delo.ua/ru/news/operaciya-karfagen-nabu-i-sap-obnarodovali-podrobnosti-dela-o-krysevanii-koll-centrov-foto-471959/) - Подтверждает обнародование НАБУ/САП деталей дела о «крышевании» колл-центров.
- [NABU and SAP's Operation Carthage: How the Scheme of an Office of the Prosecutor General Staff Member for 'Shielding' Call Centers Worked](https://fakty.com.ua/ru/ukraine/20260905-operatsiya-karfagen-nabu-i-sap-yak-diyala-shema-posadovtsya-ogpu-z-kryshuvannya-kol-tsentriv/) - Подтверждает схему «крышевания» колл-центров работником Офиса генпрокурора.
- [Operation 'Carthage': NABU Revealed Details of the 'Shielding' of Call Centers in the Office of the Prosecutor General](https://ru.slovoidilo.ua/2026/09/05/novost/bezopasnost/operaciya-karfagen-nabu-raskrylo-detali-kryshevaniya-kol-centrov-ofise-genprokurora) - Подтверждает детали дела в Офисе генерального прокурора.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: What is Operation 'Carthage'?
**A:** It is an investigation by NABU and SAP in which materials from a case on the 'shielding' of call centers, linked to staff of the Office of the Prosecutor General, were released. The outcome was Prosecutor General Ruslan Khrachenko's resignation request.

### Q: Why did Prosecutor General Khrachenko resign?
**A:** According to RBC-Ukraine, after Operation 'Carthage' was announced he actively defended himself, which was perceived as a defense of the entire vertical of power. At the Monday meeting at Bankova this was pointed out to him, after which he announced his resignation.

### Q: Who will replace Khrachenko as Prosecutor General?
**A:** At the time of publication, the long list of candidates has not been formed: Zelensky left on visits to Norway and Canada, and the issue has been put on pause until his return.

### Q: Are the scandals around the authorities connected to each other?
**A:** According to sources of the publication, the episodes (the Mudra case, 'Carthage,' the SBU–GUR conflict at Beresnyaky) are not generally connected, but together they create the feeling that the state machinery has 'gone off the rails.'