President Volodymyr Zelensky says senior officials named in Ukraine’s anti-corruption agency drug-ring recordings have no links to the alleged criminal network. Zelensky made the claim on Nov. 13, focusing on the recordings released as part of a high-profile investigation. The names mentioned were the health minister, a former interior minister, and a lawmaker, but none appear on the anti-corruption bureau’s published tapes. Investigators allege the transnational synthetic-drug network known as Khimprom planned to use bribes to keep its drugs off Ukraine’s list of banned substances. The plan failed, the bureau said, and it reported that the former interior minister was not implicated. Ukraine’s anti-corruption bureau says the network was run by a Russian-born fugitive identified in the recordings by a call sign. The same recordings also point to another operator, allegedly tied to protecting scam call centers, selling synthetic drugs, and attacking people trying to expose the scheme. Investigators further accuse the group of running a retail chain selling synthetic cannabinoids and psychotropic substances under the cover of souvenir shops. To avoid restrictions, prosecutors say the network repeatedly changed the chemical structure of substances so they fell outside formal controlled-drug lists. Zelensky added that Khimprom has already made inroads into Poland and is trying to enter Germany, and that Ukraine has intelligence on the effort. He said the operation is not being carried out without support from intelligence services, and urged partners, “above all, the Americans,” to help stop the network. He also said the interior minister and the security service chief have no involvement, despite allegations in the wider scheme, and stressed that the investigation is ongoing.