Editor's note: The story was updated with a comment by Presidential Office deputy head Oleh Tatarov.
Oleh Tatarov, deputy head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, has traveled to Moscow at least nine times since Russia's initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's investigation project Schemes reported on Nov. 7, citing obtained flight data.
Tatarov is the most controversial official in President Volodymyr Zelensky's administration. He was charged with bribery before joining the administration, but the corruption case against him has been obstructed by law enforcement agencies and courts and eventually closed.
Prior to his appointment to the Presidential Office in 2020, Tatarov worked in the Internal Affairs Ministry under former pro-Kremlin President Viktor Yanukovych. Tatarov worked as a lawyer later in 2014.
According to the investigation by Schemes, Tatarov visited Russia three times in 2017, four times in 2018, and twice in 2019. He traveled to Moscow from Kyiv via Belarus on most of his trips, since flights between Ukraine and Russia were suspended after 2014, Schemes reported.
The last time Tatarov flew to Russia was the day after Zelensky won the presidential runoff on April 21, 2019, according to the media investigation.
Tatarov also reportedly traveled to Russian-occupied Crimea in 2015. Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula was illegally annexed by Russia in 2014.
The reasons for Tatarov's trips are unknown.
In a subsequent comment to BBC News Ukraine, Tatarov called the investigation "a fake," denying information about any contacts with Russian representatives. He did not respond to a request the Schemes had sent him before the publication, the journalists said.
Despite multiple controversies, Zelensky has refused to suspend or fire Tatarov.
Earlier in August, Zelensky defended Tatarov during his press conference in response to a question about his team's effectiveness.
"Oleh Tatarov, together with (Security Service Chief) Vasyl Maliuk, were killing Chechens in Ukraine, in Kyiv, when you were not here," Zelensky said.
"Should I drive him out to be killed by the Russians?" he asked. The president did not provide further details but claimed that Ukrainian journalists had been told about this "off the record" and that the U.S. is also aware of it.
Martin Fornusek
