Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Court Permits Suspect MP to Travel for EU Talks

Serhiy Labaziuk's European Trip Approved

According to Главком: The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has granted permission for Member of Parliament Serhiy Labaziuk to travel temporarily to Europe. He will join a five-MP delegation for negotiations concerning agricultural policy and quotas between the EU and Ukraine, scheduled from March 16 to 22. Labaziuk chairs the parliamentary subcommittee on agricultural policy. This decision comes despite his status as a suspect in a criminal case, highlighting the complex balance between legal proceedings and state business. Should he fail to return on time, a bail of 40 million hryvnias will be forfeited.

Labaziuk is under criminal suspicion under Part 4 of Article 369 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which addresses the offering of an unlawful benefit to a public official holding a particularly responsible position. The criminal proceedings related to this suspicion are classified.

The Allegations and Context

On November 21, 2023, Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office formally notified Labaziuk of the suspicion. According to the investigation, in August 2023, he allegedly approached Deputy Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov with a request to award contracts worth 1 billion hryvnias to his company, JSC Yu Ar Di. Furthermore, a private enterprise owned by Labaziuk, Agrarian Company 2004, leases agricultural land from the families of officials in the Khmelnytskyi region.

Commenting on his travel request, Labaziuk stated that he is the only delegation member with practical negotiation experience, which is why he petitioned the court for permission to travel. Serhiy Labaziuk

In December 2025, the MP was previously allowed to travel to Moldova, and he returned within the stipulated timeframe.

This case underscores ongoing challenges within Ukraine's anti-corruption landscape, where lawmakers under suspicion can still participate in official international missions. The situation raises ethical questions about Labaziuk's involvement in agricultural policy talks, given his direct business interests in the sector, and may influence future debates on the integrity of Ukraine's political and anti-corruption reforms.