1+1 has issued an official statement regarding the ‘treason’ accusations against one of its journalists.

Ukrainian official Oleg Gladkovsky, a business partner of President Petro Poroshenko, as well as the First Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, has initiated a criminal procedure against the host of 1+1’s Money Oleksandr Dubinskyi after his journalistic investigation.

Dubinskyi's report suggests that Mr. Gladkovsky conducts business in Russia and carries offshore operations. Dubinskyi indicates facts that the funds earned by the official in Ukraine are invested in Russian
subsidiaries of "Bogdan" Corporation through Cypriot offshores.

Since Oleg Gladkovsky holds a high-level government position and is in the Ukrainian president's inner circle, 1+1 believes that he can take advantage of his broad powers to pressure the law enforcement agencies for his personal revenge on Dubinskyi. Therefore, 1+1 considers that the threat to Oleksandr Dubinskyi's freedom is very realistic. The channel underlined that this situation is unprecedented since it is the first time in their practice when a criminal case is launched against a journalist because of his work.

The state official is essentially attempting to accuse a journalist of treason, and subsequently, of terrorism, as evidenced by the criminal proceeding under Article 259 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. At 1+1 believe that “such actions by a civil servant are disturbing signals for the future of Ukraine, since they demonstrate that officials close to the president identify their own business with the interests of the state, guided by the principle of Louis XIV, "State is me", and consider the disclosure of their dubious actions to be a threat to the security of the country.”

“We would like to draw the attention of the international community to the fact that freedom of speech and the protection of journalistic activities are among the basic principles of the development of democratic countries. We want to believe that the international resonance will help stop these destructive processes in Ukraine,” 1+1 concluded.