Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has described statements made by Serhiy Nizhynsky, who was recalled from his post as Ukraine’s ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus, as part of a smear campaign and stressed that the allegations he voiced are groundless.
The ministry’s position was set out in a comment provided by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s press service to Interfax-Ukraine on Friday.
“We are compelled to respond to the dirty smear campaign against the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched by the ambassador recalled from his post in the Republic of Cyprus. We reject the false and unfounded allegations of corruption or any other unlawful conduct, which have absolutely no factual basis,” the ministry said.
The Foreign Ministry noted that testimony given at a meeting of the temporary investigative commission was recorded and provided under signature in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On Temporary Investigative Commissions and Temporary Special Commissions of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.” The ministry also reminded that “misleading the commission carries criminal liability under Article 384 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.”
The ministry said it would “appeal to the competent authorities requesting a thorough review of the false statements made without any supporting evidence.”
“We believe that the individual in question is motivated by revenge following his dismissal from office. At the same time, this does not lend any credibility to the allegations he has made. Mr. Nizhynsky’s actions, including bringing his personal conflict with Elliinas Christodoulos, a candidate for honorary consul in the Republic of Cyprus, into the public sphere and generating numerous scandals, have damaged Ukraine’s foreign policy interests internationally, created risks to the reputation of bilateral relations with the Republic of Cyprus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, and the Ukrainian state as a whole,” the statement said.
The ministry separately described it as telling that the former ambassador’s latest statements had been picked up most actively by Russian and pro-Russian media outlets.
“We are convinced that this stream of consciousness and baseless accusations only confirms that the decision to recall the individual from the post of ambassador was both timely and justified,” the ministry added.
Earlier on Friday, during a meeting of the temporary investigative commission chaired by Member of Parliament Oleksiy Honcharenko, former Ukrainian Ambassador to Cyprus Nizhynsky claimed that a criminal organization had allegedly been operating in Cyprus and that Elliinas Christodoulos, whom Ukrainian authorities had intended to appoint honorary consul in the republic, was among its members. Nizhynsky also claimed that he had written his resignation letter on June 15 under “legal and psychological pressure.”
According to him, in July he allegedly received warnings from the intelligence services of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Poland, and Italy that preparations were being made to abduct him upon his return to Ukraine because he had “blocked Christodoulos’ activities.”
He also stated that if anything happened to him, “the blood for my liquidation will be on the hands of Foreign Minister Sybiha, who failed to protect my family.”
On June 15, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied reports that Ambassador Nizhynsky had voluntarily resigned, noting that he had already been submitted for recall before reports of his resignation appeared in the media.
The ministry explained that Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha had submitted a proposal to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on June 10 recommending Nizhynsky’s recall due to a lack of meaningful results in his work and his failure to advance Ukraine’s national interests during Cyprus’ presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Earlier, media outlets reported that Nizhynsky had submitted a resignation letter addressed to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In the document, Nizhynsky stated that he was resigning “because of Foreign Minister A.I. Sybiha’s demand that I carry out decisions that contradict the laws of Ukraine and may harm the state.”
Nizhynsky was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Cyprus in July 2025. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed the corresponding decree, No. 527/2025, on July 21, 2025.
