Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov has left Ukraine and plans to hide in the US, according to the pro-Russian blogger Dan Diaconu.
NEWS: “Several sources are talking about the "desertion of duty" of Rustem Umerov, the current Ukrainian defense minister. Umerov went to Turkey to participate in a prisoner exchange with Russia and has not returned from there. The problem is that no prisoner exchange was scheduled in Turkey, according to Russian officials, which means that Umerov has pretty much taken off from Ukraine.
I have dealt with this individual on several occasions, particularly in light of the fact that his entire family lives in the US in dazzling luxury. No fewer than eight ultra-luxury properties in select locations are registered in the names of his family members. Therefore, Umerov may have taken refuge in Mother America, of which he is a citizen, with the money he has obtained from theft and corruption. And probably no one in the US will have anything against it.
His stopover in Turkey is also interesting. As I have said in the past, this is an important hub through which Ukrainian corruption money passes. The man probably took his share and flew off to the US. Squeaky dirty, mon cher!”
NARRATIVE: Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Rusten Umerov plans to hide in the US, where he owns several luxury properties.
OBJECTIVES: To promote an anti-Ukrainian and, by extension, pro-Russian rhetoric, to provoke and amplify social tensions, and to validate his own conspiracy theories.
Unsubstantiated revelations
WHY THE NARRATIVE IS FALSE: Probably hastily picking up information from some Russian-language propaganda channel, Diaconu got lost in translation, forgetting that Rustem Umerov has not been Minister of Defense since July 2025, when the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv appointed former Prime Minister Denis Shmyhal to this position, at the proposal of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Although he later edited the article, the Internet's memory is longer than that of propaganda, which is quick to spread as many lies as possible in the media.
Umerov is currently the secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council, a position in which he has been tasked with negotiating with Russia and third parties on prisoner exchanges and other security issues. On November 11, media outlets in several countries reported on the start of a diplomatic tour undertaken by Umerov for this purpose in Turkey and the Middle East. Turkey in particular, but also the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have mediated several prisoner exchanges between Russia and Ukraine. Announcing his presence in Istanbul, the Ukrainian official wrote on X that "in the coming days, I will be working in Turkey and the Middle East to unblock the exchange process (editor's note: of prisoners). In the coming days, I will have several meetings, and the focus will be precisely on this issue - the resumption of exchanges." Although Umerov did not specify who he would be meeting with, the Turkish press has already reported on a meeting between Umerov and Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on November 12, and the Ukrainian official himself reported on a series of other talks with Defense Minister Yashar Guler, National Intelligence Organization chief Ibrahim Kalin, and President Erdogan's foreign policy adviser, Akif Chagatay Kilic.
It is true that on November 11, through the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Russia stated that it had " nothing to report on this issue " and that it had not scheduled any meetings for negotiations on a prisoner exchange in Istanbul; but it is equally true that, a few hours after Umerov's meeting with Hakan Fidan, Russia's chargé d'affaires in Turkey, Alexei Ivanov, stated that Moscow is ready to resume negotiations with Kyiv in Istanbul, most likely a sign that Turkish diplomacy has already taken some steps in this direction.
In fact, Umerov never said he was going to meet with any Russian officials, and his talks with members of the Ankara government, as well as with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, whom he met with on Thursday in Doha, focused not only on the exchange of prisoners of war and the repatriation of Ukrainian children illegally deported by Russia from the occupied territories, but also on issues related to cooperation and the humanitarian, financial, and diplomatic support received by Kyiv from these states. On Saturday, in another post, on Facebook, Umerov said that, in addition to Turkey, where he returned after his visit to Qatar, representatives of the United Arab Emirates also took part in the consultations on resuming the prisoner exchange process with Russia, and as a result of these negotiations, it was agreed to activate the previous agreements in Istanbul, which will lead to the release of 1,200 Ukrainians, most likely by the end of the year.
It appears that Umerov did indeed subsequently travel to the United States, but not to evade justice or war, but rather to discuss with President Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff , a 28-point plan by the US administration to end the war with Russia.
Furthermore, Ukraine's Center for Countering Disinformation rejected the hypothesis of Umerov's "desertion," calling it "a deliberate attempt to destabilize public confidence." CCD confirmed Umerov’s visit to the US "for a series of high-level consultations aimed at strengthening international support for Ukraine," adding that Umerov is in constant contact with Ukraine's leadership and "continues to oversee key security, defense, and humanitarian policy issues."
As for Umerov's American citizenship, we are dealing with the same false narrative previously promoted by Dan Diaconu, for which he presented absolutely no evidence, similar to the claim that the secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council owns "ultra-luxury" properties in the United States. When he was removed from his position as Minister of Defense, Umerov's name was floated for the post of Ukrainian ambassador to Washington, which is currently the only scenario in which the Kyiv official would acquire US residency. Umerov's association with "theft and corruption" has no basis other than Russian propaganda, as there are currently no open cases or preliminary investigations against him. Although his name has been mentioned in the recent scandal related to corruption in the Ukrainian energy system, which resulted in resignations at the highest level, Umerov stated that although he had a meeting with Timur Mindici, considered the mastermind of the operation, it did not result in the conclusion of any contract with him. Moreover, he declared himself ready to provide "relevant information and explanations" to the media and anyone interested in this matter.
Russia is everywhere and in everything
CONTEXT: Dan Diaconu, who describes himself as an economic analyst, is a pro-Russian blogger whose website is a conglomeration of conspiracy theories, fake news, and disinformation on most current affairs, as well as articles in which Russia is considered a model state and its aggression against Ukraine is praised. His "economic" articles are in fact eulogies to countries outside the "globalist" circle, presented as models of success, with the idea of showing that prosperity can be achieved even if a country chooses its own economic model, based on a policy that is totally independent of that of various international organizations, especially those in which the US and Western European countries have an important say.
Over time, Diaconu has promoted several false narratives and anti-American disinformation, such as those claiming that partnerships with the US lead to bankruptcy, while agreements with Russia ensure prosperity, or that Moscow's technological superiority over Washington after an non-existent capture by Russian forces of a state-of-the-art American drone. At the same time, Diaconu constantly promotes "classic" narratives of anti-Ukrainian propaganda, such as those claiming that Ukrainian pilots trained in Romania are drunkards and incompetent, as well as baseless lies and speculation, such as the one claiming that Ukraine is selling its land to Poland, or that the Ukrainian secret services are behind the attempted assassination of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico. A few weeks ago, the same Dan Diaconu falsely claimed that Russia had developed a cancer vaccine.
In addition, Diaconu keeps a kind of frontline diary on Telegram, in which he informs his followers about the victories of the Russian army, excessively praising its successes on the battlefield. Moreover, when he announces the conquest and destruction of a new Ukrainian town, he speaks of its "liberation."
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