“Yuzik” gets a green light to Spain, the opposition gets a continued travel ban: what a new investigation by “Ukrainska Pravda” has revealed
Yuriy Koryavchenkov (also known as Yuzik), a member of parliament from the Servant of the People faction and former artist at the Kvartal 95 Studio, and a close friend of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has traveled to Spain several times in recent months.
As journalists from ” Ukrainian Pravda ” discovered, his wife bought an apartment there.
In particular, Koryavchenkov traveled to the Costa Brava coast near Barcelona immediately after being questioned by the NABU regarding payments in envelopes – bribes for voting for Servant of the People deputies.
According to Ukrainska Pravda’s sources in law enforcement, the MP was questioned by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) on March 13. The following day, March 14, he left the country in his own car via the Krakovets private enterprise, the article states.
In a conversation with UP journalist Mykhailo Tkach, Koryavchenkov said his wife had purchased an apartment in Spain, which he would later declare. He knew nothing about the cost. The MP’s wife had previously served as his assistant. Koryavchenkov’s wife said they took out a loan for the apartment, which cost 150,000 euros.
According to UP sources, Koryavchenkov visited his family in Spain in late 2025, precisely when NABU and SAP were reporting suspicions to members of parliament for receiving cash payments. In February 2026, Koryavchenkov returned to his family, and then went to Spain again in March.
At the same time, opposition MPs cannot travel on international business trips without permission from the Verkhovna Rada leadership (both Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk and First Deputy Oleksandr Kornienko represent the presidential party). The opposition believes that permission to travel to participate in international events is essentially granted by Bankova Street.
The illegal procedure for manually managing the travel arrangements of deputies is set out in the Cabinet of Ministers Resolution of January 7, 2023.
Влада вдруге цинічно перешкодила Порошенку відбути на ПА НАТО у Вільнюс
But back in May 2022, the authorities prevented Petro Poroshenko from leaving on an official foreign mission as part of his delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Vilnius.
On December 1, 2023, fifth President Petro Poroshenko was again barred from traveling abroad for international meetings. Poroshenko is scheduled to attend the International Democratic Union Forum in Washington and meetings in the Polish Sejm.
In February 2024, the authorities disrupted Petro Poroshenko’s participation in the Munich Security Conference, as well as meetings with politicians in Poland and Israel. Despite receiving official invitations for Poroshenko, the Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada refused to sign the travel document.
At the same time, Roman Kostenko, a People’s Deputy from the Golos faction and Secretary of the National Security Committee, was also banned from attending the Munich Security Conference.
The authorities have repeatedly disrupted international visits by members of parliament from European Solidarity.
On March 12, 2025, the European Parliament, in its resolution in support of Ukraine, called on the Ukrainian authorities to stop blocking the opposition’s international activities. In the resolution, MEPs called on the Ukrainian authorities to strengthen internal political unity, support parliamentary pluralism, and actively cooperate with the political parties in the Verkhovna Rada.
Petro Poroshenko challenged illegal restrictions on his parliamentary powers in court, winning in two instances.
In November 2025, the Sixth Administrative Court of Appeals ruled illegal the Cabinet of Ministers’ resolution “On Amending the Rules for Crossing the State Border by Citizens of Ukraine,” which effectively created a system of manual control over the exit of members of parliament and officials.
During the court hearing, a Cabinet of Ministers representative attempted to explain that without such a ban, the Verkhovna Rada could have “dispersed” during the war. However, the overwhelming majority of MPs who did travel abroad returned to Ukraine and continue to work, the court noted. After two years of hearings, the court ruled the travel ban unlawful, according to Poroshenko’s lawyer, Ihor Golovan: “It invalidated and illegalized this arbitrary government decision that imposed the so-called ‘travel ban.’ In other words, these restrictions are illegal.”
“The court essentially reminded the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine that Ukraine is a parliamentary-presidential republic, that the Cabinet of Ministers itself is appointed by the Parliament of Ukraine and must be accountable to it. In this ruling, the Cabinet of Ministers exceeded its authority by effectively creating instruments of pressure on members of parliament. This contradicts the fundamental principles of democracy in the country. And accordingly, this is precisely what the court stated must be changed. We very much hope for a swift response from both border guards to this court ruling, as it clearly has superior authority than a decree, and for the government to overturn it, as this is a matter of the rule of law,” MP Viktoria Syumar emphasized at a briefing in the Verkhovna Rada.
European partners have repeatedly called on the authorities to lift restrictions on opposition members of parliament in Ukraine from engaging in international activities and the ban on traveling abroad.
“Some opposition MPs remained subject to certain restrictions, particularly on traveling abroad or asset freezes. For democratic resilience, it is essential to continuously ensure respect for the rights of the opposition. No legislative initiatives regulating the rights of the parliamentary opposition were developed or registered,” states the European Commission’s 2025 Ukraine Report.
Despite the court’s decision entering into force, Sviridenko’s government has yet to overturn the illegal ruling and is doing everything possible to delay the Supreme Court’s consideration of the case, the opposition reports.
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