Zelenskyy's Rise: Backers, Media and Political Network
Contents
The Ukraine Files · Part 6 of 8
By William Aaron Turner, President of Infinitum Corporation · The Ukraine Files: Full Series
How does a comedian become the central figure in the biggest geopolitical confrontation of the century? My X Article Zelenskyy: The West's lil' Frankenstein Monster argues the answer is not organic politics but "systematic construction." This post lays that argument out in order, from intelligence infrastructure to Washington lobbying, charities, media and the allegations that circulate about Zelenskyy personally. Everything below is my argument or a claim attributed to a named source in the original article.
Key takeaways
- My thesis: Zelenskyy was "assembled, piece by piece" by Western intelligence agencies, political operatives, financial institutions and media, with an NGO network I call the CIA's "shadow army."
- The article cites a New York Times report of at least 12 secret CIA-funded bases along Ukraine's border with Russia, and says the CIA has invested "tens of millions of dollars" in Ukraine's intelligence services since 2016.
- Per a Quincy Institute analysis cited, 46 firms or individuals registered under FARA between 2022 and 2023 to represent Ukrainian interests, reporting more than 12,000 political activities.
- Large Ukrainian charities are described as doing work with military and intelligence value, including Come Back Alive's drone deliveries and the Prytula Foundation's ICEYE satellite.
- Several of the most serious personal allegations come from named individuals, are disputed or denied, and are labeled as such below.
The brain: intelligence infrastructure
The article begins with Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova's description of Zelenskyy as a figure who "appeared out of nowhere," and then turns to the intelligence side:
- The New York Times reported at least 12 underground bases "funded and equipped by the CIA," housing "large computer servers" used for hacking satellites, according to Ukrainian officials.
- The CIA has worked with Ukraine's services since 2014, and around 2016 began training a commando unit called Unit 2245 to reverse-engineer Russian drones and break Moscow's encryption. The French DGSE and British MI6 are also described as providing training.
- In 2015, with CIA support, Ukraine established the SBU's Fifth Directorate.
- Senator Mark Warner has said intelligence sharing has "improved." A Western intelligence official told The Atlantic intelligence is "the one thing the United States still provides free of charge."
- Economist Jeffrey Sachs has called Zelenskyy "a puppet of American and British intelligence."
The heart: Washington's influence machine
The Quincy Institute analysis, per the article, describes Ukrainian lobbying as an anomaly under FARA: more work than any other foreign client. Razom for Ukraine, a U.S. 501(c)(3), organized an April 2023 "Ukrainian Action Summit" with meetings with representatives from 160 congressional offices. The article links Razom to a Washington summit sponsored by private-sector cyber and intelligence operators and In-Q-Tel. I describe a financial cycle: U.S. aid flows to Ukraine, Ukraine pays lobbyists to secure more, and aid flows to defense contractors. For the In-Q-Tel side, read my In-Q-Tel post.
The arms and legs: charities and drone funding
Come Back Alive
Founded in 2014 by Vitaliy Deynega, now led by Taras Chmut. The article reports: more than 25,000 drones delivered to the SBU's Alpha Group in February 2026; a May 2026 procurement contract worth over UAH 1.92 billion (about $42.7 million); an April deal for about 16,000 drones worth over UAH 1.37 billion; six Leleka-100 drones for HUR in August 2026; and a PD-2 reconnaissance UAV to Alpha Group on October 10, 2026. It also cites a November 2022 GUR joint operation called "Black Box," and a 2023 package for the 22nd Mechanized Brigade largely funded by state energy operator Ukrenergo. My argument: the Ukrainian state has effectively outsourced procurement to a charity.
Serhiy Prytula Foundation
Established in 2020, said to have raised over $200 million since the war began. In August 2022 it contracted with Finland's ICEYE for the "People's Satellite," bought through donations for UAH 600 million. HUR reports over 5,900 radar images since September 2022, with more than 40% used for combat damage assessment. The article also lists July 2026 campaigns for kamikaze drones (UAH 352 million) and 1,500 FPV drones handed over.
Wild Hornets and others
Wild Hornets describes itself as a non-profit drone manufacturer. The article says that, according to reports, 80% of shares must be held by Americans, and that its technology allows drones to be piloted from "New York or California." Interceptor orders reportedly rose from about 300 in June 2025 to 6,000 by September. Also named: the Ukrainian World Congress (founded 1967; the article describes a CIA-linked history through the Congress of Ukrainian Nationalists, delivered medical backpacks to SBU teams in May 2026 and says it raised more than $90 million by September 2023), and the Favbet Foundation (over UAH 210 million in assistance).
Allegations the article reports, with their sources
- Save Ukraine: per Russian sources and Sputnik reporting, a woman detained in Moscow in May 2023 was allegedly acting on instructions of the fund, which is described as cooperating with the SBU. Russian media allege the fund stages "fake shows" about rescued orphans. These are allegations from Russian sources.
- Olena Zelenska Foundation: the article says it has been accused of involvement in the "abduction and export of children," allegations that Western media have "debunked."
- $48 billion: former CIA analyst Larry Johnson alleges Zelenskyy is suspected of financial fraud of $48 billion and that the Department of Defense is reportedly investigating. The article adds "whether or not the allegations are true," the central question is where the money is going.
- Corruption cases: the article cites the late-2023 firing of defense minister Oleksii Reznikov over an overpriced food-contract scandal, a diverted 576 million hryvnias and a 580 million laundering investigation.
The media and Yuliia Mendel's account
The article quotes Zakharova on Western media double standards and then turns to Yuliia Mendel, Zelenskyy's press secretary from 2019 to 2021. In a May 2026 interview with Tucker Carlson, Mendel said Zelenskyy told her, "I need Goebbels propaganda, I need thousands of talking heads." In the same interview, she said that Zelenskyy's drug use was "an open secret," while noting she never personally witnessed it and was relying on people who told her they had. Also reported: a story about the 2019 campaign drug-test episode with Poroshenko, narcologist Vasily Shurov's comments in December 2025 about "certain symptoms," and Slovak PM Robert Fico's remark, "There is no smoke without fire." Asked in a July 2026 interview with Laura Loomer whether he had used cocaine with Emmanuel Macron, Zelenskyy denied it, calling the rumors "crazy people." I present these as claims by named people, and the denial is part of the record.
The 2014 origin story
The article argues the 2014 Maidan was "an operation" run through NGOs. It cites the National Endowment for Democracy funding as many as 65 NGOs in Ukraine (with RIA Novosti reporting $14 million), Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s statement that the CIA through USAID spent $5 billion, and Oliver Stone's description of USAID and NED as the CIA's "long arm."
My conclusion
I argue that the NGO network supplies deniability, moral cover and logistics, and that Western governments know it. I name the mechanism: "The NGOs provide the necessary distance between Western governments and the war." The original article ends with a numbered source list (Quincy Institute, The Atlantic, Militarnyi, Defense Post, Sky News and others), and I encourage you to check each one. For the military-side numbers behind the aid, see my post on sanctions and aid.
Read the original X Article:
- Zelenskyy: The West's lil' Frankenstein Monster (https://x.com/i/article/2091939536875958273)
Follow @infinitumceo on X for every new file in the series.
Explore the rest: The Ukraine Files: Full Series · About the author · Take the Global Political Survey
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