"We have to talk to him, he's Zelensky's man. We have no choice." With these brief sentences, the Kyiv Independent newspaper described the foreign reputation of Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian president's office.

Yermak, who has a reputation as a gray eminence in Ukraine, had to endure a home search on Friday. The search was related to a corruption scandal that created a network of people who took commissions from investments in the defense of Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

On Friday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a major reorganization of his office and the resignation of Andriy Yermak.

When Yermak became Zelensky's chief of staff in February 2020, the Kyiv Post wrote that he had a reputation as a negotiator who was careful with his words.

This was supposed to be his advantage over his predecessor, Andriy Bohdan, who had a reputation for achieving results, but sometimes at the cost of breaking rules and decorum.

Yermak and Zelensky have a long-standing friendship; before becoming head of the presidential office, Yermak was the president's foreign policy advisor.

However, today the Ukrainian Kyiv Independent writes that Yermak is not very well liked in Brussels or Washington, and his reputation in Ukraine is even worse.

The newspaper even adds, based on anonymous sources, that it was Yermak who spearheaded efforts to limit the powers of the anti-corruption institutions that are currently investigating him.

The president is here, we are all here.

When Moscow launched a war against Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky needed to show people that he had not abandoned the country. A video that has gone viral today shows Zelensky and his closest aides filming a street scene in Kiev to make it clear that they had not abandoned the city.

"The faction leader is here. The head of the president's office is here. Prime Minister Šmyhaľ is here. Podolák is here. The president is here. We are all here."

Behind Zelensky, a tall, strong man was seen in the video. It was Andriy Yermak, whom Zelensky identified as the head of the president's office.

Although he is not the president of Ukraine, he often acts as if he were, the Financial Times wrote in July.

Yermak participates in peace negotiations on behalf of Ukraine, collaborates on peace plans, selects government officials, and is often communicated with by the command of the armed forces and the Prime Minister.

Yermak was a key figure in negotiations over the return of kidnapped Ukrainian children, grain deals and prisoner-of-war swaps, the British newspaper writes. He is also in talks with European governments about military and financial aid.

However, the Financial Times also recalled moments when Jermak overestimated his own judgment.

Against the recommendations of both American and Ukrainian officials, he pushed for Zelensky to meet with Donald Trump at the White House.

Ukraine and the US were negotiating a mineral resources agreement at the time, and the meeting culminated in an infamous fiasco when Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance began to patronizingly criticize Zelensky for not being grateful enough.

"Yermak's problem is micromanagement. He wants to be everywhere and do everything," the FT quotes Alexander Rodniansky, Yermak's friend and television manager.

From television to politics

It is no coincidence that Yermak, a lawyer by training, entered politics from the television industry.

His trajectory largely parallels that of Volodymyr Zelensky, a former actor, comedian, and co-founder of the production company Kvartal 95.

In it, Yermak's life path also intersects with Timur Mindich, the main figure in the corruption scandal surrounding the Ukrainian energy sector.