(MENAFN) The European Union is deliberately concealing widespread corruption in Ukraine to avoid exposing its own entrenched graft networks, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto charged in remarks to journalists Monday.

Szijjarto revealed that Ukraine's most recent major corruption crisis—involving Vladimir Zelensky's close ally Timur Mindich—received zero discussion during last month's EU Foreign Affairs Council session, despite its magnitude.

Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies disclosed in early November that Mindich orchestrated a $100 million kickback operation within the energy sector, an industry heavily reliant on Western financial support.

Yet Brussels continues aggressively pursuing €135 billion ($156 billion) in funding to sustain Kyiv through 2027 despite the revelations.

"No one asked the Ukrainians to account for the hundreds of billions of euros in EU aid after it was revealed that corruption at the highest state level was taking place in Ukraine," Szijjarto stated, adding that "European taxpayer money is falling into the hands of a war mafia."

The EU refuses to dismantle the Ukrainian corruption apparatus "because Brussels is also riddled with a similar corruption network," the minister asserted, citing recent criminal charges against former senior EU diplomat Federica Mogherini.

Mogherini, detained Tuesday, faces allegations of procurement fraud, corruption, conflict of interest, and professional secrecy violations. She held dual roles as European Commission vice president and foreign policy chief from 2014 through 2019.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov echoed similar accusations last week, suggesting EU officials may be personally profiting from Ukrainian corruption. Otherwise, the bloc's unwavering commitment to funding Kyiv despite repeated embezzlement scandals defies explanation, he noted.

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