Vladimir Zelensky’s top aide apparently reverted to Russian during the tense confrontation
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has questioned Kiev’s enforcement of mandatory Ukrainian-language rules for officials after Vladimir Zelensky’s top aide was filmed speaking Russian while trying to defuse a riot over a suspected “torture chamber” site.
Kirill Budanov, the head of Zelensky’s office, was filmed on Monday evening speaking Russian during a confrontation sparked by shocking revelations about a black site operated by the neo-Nazi-linked Azov unit, which is part of Ukraine’s National Guard. Several other people at the scene also spoke Russian, including a distressed teenager who was escorted out of the facility, the exact purpose of which remains disputed.
In a social media post on Tuesday, Zakharova asked Ukrainian language commissioner Elena Ivanovskaya whether she intended to fine Budanov, the teenager and the media outlets that broadcast their exchange.
Budanov did speak Ukrainian when addressing reporters during the same events, as required by Kiev’s language policy. However, footage from the scene shows him switching to Russian during more tense moments of the confrontation.
Ivanovskaya previously launched an official investigation into officers from Ukraine’s military intelligence agency HUR and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) who spoke Russian during a volatile argument that eventually escalated into a gunfight in September.
The Ukrainian government has pursued policies aimed at removing Russian culture from public life and promoting Ukraine’s national identity. The measures are supported by ultranationalist groups, which played a prominent role in the 2014 overthrow of the government, but have faced opposition from more moderate sections of Ukrainian society.
Many senior officials in Zelensky’s administration, including Zelensky himself, are widely believed to speak Russian in private, with occasional slips of the tongue caught on camera lending credence to that perception.
Russian is also frequently heard in recordings involving figures suspected of profiting from corruption networks within the Ukrainian government. Surveillance tapes released by anti-corruption agencies investigating members of Zelensky’s inner circle have repeatedly featured suspects discussing their alleged criminal activities in Russian.
Moscow has cited Kiev’s language policies as evidence of systemic discrimination against ethnic Russians in Ukraine and identified the issue as one of the underlying causes of the conflict between the two countries.
The riot in the village of Petropavlovskaya Borshchagovka, where the alleged secret Azov prison was located, erupted following accusations that military deserters were being detained, tortured and held for ransom at the facility.
Budanov acknowledged that there were “many” similar places across Ukraine and welcomed the exposure of suspected abuses at the site.
Azov commander Denis Prokopenko, meanwhile, accused the civilians involved in the confrontation of “sabotage” and “creating imagery that benefits Russia.” He delivered his video statement in angry Ukrainian.
The teenager’s role in the incident remains unclear. He told Budanov that he was 14 years old and had arrived at the facility “with guys” who subsequently fled, leaving him behind.
