“Ruvin himself, when asked by “Scheme” about foreign citizenship, first stated that “it has been gone for a long time”, and then added that he “didn’t really have it””, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
Before applying for admission to the State Secret Service at the SBU, Oleksandr Ruvin stated in the questionnaire to the question about another citizenship: “I am a citizen of the State of Israel.”
In the same questionnaire, Ruvin noted that his wife, children and parents have Israeli citizenship.
“Schemes” asked the official for a comment about his foreign citizenship, he replied: “How do you know that I have it? He has been gone for a long time.”
Then he added: “I didn’t really have it. It used to be called “from housing” (residence permit – ed.) or something like that. I haven’t had it for a long time.”
Regarding the admission to the state secret, he answered that this question should not be asked of him, but “to the one who provides it.”
Ruvin did not want to answer further clarifications about the passport and the passing of the special inspection and hung up the phone. The editors sent an additional request to KNDISE on his behalf and are waiting for a response.
The Security Service of Ukraine reported in response to the request of “Scheme” that “the specified person passed the check provided for by the Law of Ukraine “On State Secrets” and received access to state secrets, having provided his personal data for its registration in accordance with the requirements of current legislation.”
The special service also noted that “in the future, as part of his official activities, the specified person should also gain access to state secrets. In accordance with the law, such access is granted to able-bodied citizens of Ukraine who have already been granted admission.”
Journalists separately sent questions to a number of law enforcement and defense agencies about whether they granted Oleksandr Ruvin access to state secrets on the basis of a permit issued earlier by the SBU.
The Ministry of Justice, to which KNDISE is subordinate, said that “they did not issue a state secret permit for Ruvin”, and documents confirming foreign citizenship are “absent” in the personnel file of the director of KNDISE.
“If official information is received (from the competent authorities) about Oleksandr Ruvin’s other citizenship, the issue of his dismissal (non-renewal of his contract) will be considered,” the Ministry of Justice said in response to the request of “Scheme”.
At the same time, the interlocutors of the journalists in the SBU explain:
“The grounds for refusal of admission to state secrets, according to the current legislation, are, in particular, the submission of unreliable information, including regarding the citizenship of another state. This is an issue that has not yet been settled and requires changes in the legislation so that in the future we have the right to make decisions on granting or refusing admission to state secrets if a person has foreign citizenship. Currently, the Supreme Court is considering a draft law that could become the basis for this.”
This is, in particular, a draft law on amendments to the Law of Ukraine “On State Secrets” regarding the improvement of measures to protect state secrets. One of its initiators, People’s Deputy Fedir Venislavsky, explains:
“One of the key goals of this draft law is to prevent access or admission to state secrets for citizens and persons who have both Ukrainian citizenship and foreign citizenship. When we talk about admission or access to state secrets for foreign nationals, we cannot be sure that this information will not be unauthorizedly transferred to any foreign country. That is why, after consultations with the SBU, we came to the conclusion that such a decision should have been made a long time ago. As of today, the issue of denying access to state secrets to citizens of Ukraine who have foreign citizenship has not actually been settled. Now we propose to introduce it, because it creates real threats.”
Ivan Stupak, a military expert and former employee of the SBU, also speaks about the need to settle this issue at the legislative level.
“For example, if there is information that a top official has a second passport, it doesn’t matter if it’s Romanian or Italian, he will most likely be fired if he lied or didn’t report it. And if such a person officially notes the presence of a second citizenship, what is the state’s policy in this regard? Does the state contribute to this? That is, the policy must be worked out. The special services now really have their hands tied in this regard, he says. – That is, the state policy regarding multiple citizenship and appointment of persons (citizens of other countries – ed.) for positions in state bodies should be built from scratch. Not restoration, but capital construction.”
Stupak adds: “There is such a term – risk management. What are the risks for Ukraine? For example, imagine another Russian or North Korean missile hits a Ukrainian city. Missile fragments are taken to KNDISE, where they are examined and discovered, for example, out of 100 parts, 20 are manufactured in Israel. Do we have confidence that the head of the institution purely for ethical reasons, because he has Israeli citizenship, for example, will not instruct his subordinates to silence the story with Israeli details, simply not to emphasize it? Because there is no need for an extra scandal. Can this be so? I would not disable such a scenario. This can really be a threat.”
Oleksandr Ruvin has been managing the Kyiv Research Institute of Forensic Expertise since 2011.
In 2016, “Schem” journalists recorded his meetings with influential persons, including representatives of Petro Poroshenko’s entourage and judges, which could indicate a conflict of interests. In 2018, NABU opened an investigation into possible illegal enrichment of Ruvin, but two weeks later the case was transferred to the National Police, which closed it in 2019: illegal enrichment was ruled out due to a change in legislation, and false declaration due to the lack of a crime.
In 2021, Bihus.Info journalists established that Ruvin and his family used luxury real estate and expensive cars that did not correspond to the declared income. In particular, Ruvin’s declaration listed two apartments (147 m² and 59 m²), a garage and non-residential premises for his wife’s business, as well as two cars: a 2017 Toyota Land Cruiser and a 2009 Toyota Camry. At the same time, the family lived in the elite residential complex Regent Hill in Pechersk, the rent of which cost up to 500 thousand. UAH per month. Ruvin’s stepson, Nazar Sheptytsky, had an apartment in the “French Quarter” residential complex and rented housing for 8 thousand dollars a month using Range Rover, Mercedes-Benz G 63 AMG and Aston Martin DB9 cars.
In the same year, on Ruvin’s birthday, the Institute was visited by influential guests, including adviser to the President’s Office Mykola Bezzubenko and deputy heads of the KMDA.
In 2024, NABU informed about the suspicion of Nazar Sheptytskyi in criminal proceedings regarding the trade of management positions in the structure of the State Customs Service.