Mykola Melnychenko
Encyclopedia
Mykola Melnychenko was a bodyguard
of the former Ukrainian
President
Leonid Kuchma
.
Between 1998 and 2000 Melnychenko allegedly recorded numerous conversations that took place in the office of the Ukrainian leader before fleeing abroad with the secretly taped recordings. The publication of these recordings in 2000 caused a major scandal
in Ukraine (known as the Cassette Scandal
), which dramatically affected the country's domestic and foreign policy. Melnychenko's principal accusations against Kuchma (supposedly confirmed by the recordings) are the ordering of the kidnapping
and murder
of journalist Georgiy Gongadze. The United States
government became involved after one of the records revealed the alleged transfer of an advanced Ukrainian radar
system Kolchuha to Saddam Hussein
's Iraq
. Hundreds of other allegations are based on the recordings.
to a family of peasants. He graduated from the Kiev Military Institute of Control and Signals
in Kiev
and became a KGB
communications protection
expert. In 1992, soon after the collapse of Soviet Union
, Melnychenko started his career in Ukraine
's personal protection agency (Upravlinnia Derzhavnoyi Okhorony—formerly the Ninth Directorate of the KGB's Ukrainian SSR
branch and now a part of the SBU). Later, he joined President Leonid Kuchma
's team of bodyguards and at the time of the scandal, Melnychenko held the rank of Major
. His main duty was to protect the President's office against possible eavesdropping
.
Melnychenko is divorced with one daughter.
publicly accused President Kuchma of involvement in the murder of Gongadze, naming Melnychenko as the source of information and playing selected recordings to journalists, starting the 'Cassette Scandal'. Days earlier Melnychenko had fled Ukraine to Ostrava
in the Czech Republic
, where he left several bags containing dozens of CDs storing thousands of digital recordings. Melnychenko left Ukraine covertly with his family, breaking an official prohibition on leaving the country.
Melnychenko claimed that he acted alone when recording the President's conversations and then publishing them abroad. According to Melnychenko, he put an amateur digital
dictaphone
under a sofa in Kuchma's office and was changing it every time he inspected the room. As the Major states, he was motivated purely by his disillusionment with what he perceived as the extremely corrupt nature of Kuchma's regime
and "decided to document evidences of crimes" committed by the President. After the disappearance of Georgiy Gongadze, he supposedly decided to publish the recordings and protect his life. Then Melnychenko turned to his political sympathizer Oleksander Moroz for help, and received it.
Later, Melnychenko moved to the United States
and received political asylum there. His tapes were eventually made available to the United States intelligence services and examined to determine their authenticity
and content. The authenticity of the whole file of tapes remains officially unconfirmed. However, U.S. forensic experts have officially analyzed the section of tapes concerning Iraq
issues and found it authentic.
The Ukrainian
authorities have issued an international search warrant
for Melnychenko, claiming that he is an 'important witness' and possible traitor of state secrets. However, no evidence of forced return or assassination efforts against Melnychenko were made public.
Many experts and journalists find Melnychenko's story highly questionable. In particular, they argue that:
Nevertheless, experts and politicians analyzing the recordings agree that at least some of them are real, judging by known voices, speaking manners and confidential details mentioned. A few politicians, including Kuchma himself, have officially claimed they recognize their own voices on the tapes. However, the President and his supporters have always denied the authenticity of the body of conversations recorded, calling them a "montage". On the other hand, in 2002 Bruce Koenig, of the US forensic firm Bek Tek, a former worker in the FBI's forensic laboratory, examined the recordings and concluded that there were no signs of them having been doctored.
's politics
and foreign relations
, making comments for media
and writing books based on his records. Most importantly, the Major continues to refuse to reveal details of the recording process or at least to present the whole volume of tapes. Although the CD "albums" of records are distributed throughout the world, Melnychenko has not indicated whether he is still in possession of further material. Instead, as critics argue, he is timing the publishing of information to coincide with certain political events. Analysts also claim that it is unusual that a number of Ukrainian politicians and statesmen, (including many well acquainted with Leonid Kuchma
) have never featured in the recordings, for example, Yevhen Marchuk
—a KGB
General and former Prime Minister of Ukraine
.
In 2004, Volodymyr Tsvil, a Ukrainian businessman and former KGB officer who supposedly assisted Melnychenko in his escape and further accommodation in the West, publicly accused him of not revealing certain details of the case.
On March 1, 2005 the criminal case against Melnychenko for "the disclosure of state secrets, abuse of office and using counterfeit documents" was closed.
Melnychenko tried to run in the Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
but was not registered as a candidate because he did not pay the mandatory election deposit of 2.5 million hryvnya.
On December 6, 2009 Melnychenko accused Volodymyr Lytvyn
of ordering the murder of journalist Georgiy Gongadze in 2000. A spokesperson for Lytvyn dismissed the claims as part of the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election
campaign.
On July 29, 2011 the criminal case against Melnychenko originally closed on March 1, 2005 was reopened. In October 2011 a arrest warrant against him was issued for "evading investigation and preventing the establishment of truth". According to Ukrainian press Melnychenko was living in the United States
at the time, he claimed he was in Israel
; he claimed because "There was a plan to physically exterminate me".
Bodyguard
A bodyguard is a type of security operative or government agent who protects a person—usually a famous, wealthy, or politically important figure—from assault, kidnapping, assassination, stalking, loss of confidential information, terrorist attack or other threats.Most important public figures such...
of the former Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
.
Between 1998 and 2000 Melnychenko allegedly recorded numerous conversations that took place in the office of the Ukrainian leader before fleeing abroad with the secretly taped recordings. The publication of these recordings in 2000 caused a major scandal
Scandal
A scandal is a widely publicized allegation or set of allegations that damages the reputation of an institution, individual or creed...
in Ukraine (known as the Cassette Scandal
Cassette Scandal
The Cassette Scandal , also known as "Tapegate" and "Kuchmagate", erupting in 2000, was one of the main political events in Ukraine's post-independence history...
), which dramatically affected the country's domestic and foreign policy. Melnychenko's principal accusations against Kuchma (supposedly confirmed by the recordings) are the ordering of the kidnapping
Kidnapping
In criminal law, kidnapping is the taking away or transportation of a person against that person's will, usually to hold the person in false imprisonment, a confinement without legal authority...
and murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
of journalist Georgiy Gongadze. The United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
government became involved after one of the records revealed the alleged transfer of an advanced Ukrainian radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
system Kolchuha to Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
's Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. Hundreds of other allegations are based on the recordings.
Biography
Mykola Melnychenko was born in Kiev OblastKiev Oblast
Kyiv Oblast, sometimes written as Kiev Oblast is an oblast in central Ukraine.The administrative center of the oblast is the city of Kyiv , also being the capital of Ukraine...
to a family of peasants. He graduated from the Kiev Military Institute of Control and Signals
Kiev Military Institute of Control and Signals
Kiev Military Institute of Control and Signals is an institution of higher military education in Ukraine, located in its capital city of Kiev. Subordinated to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the Institute is training officers specializing in signals, combat control, radio reconnaissance and...
in Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
and became a KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
communications protection
Communications protection
In telecommunications, communications protection is the application of communications security measures to telecommunications systems in order to: deny unauthorized access to sensitive unclassified information of value, prevent disruption of telecommunications services, or ensure the...
expert. In 1992, soon after the collapse of Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
, Melnychenko started his career in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
's personal protection agency (Upravlinnia Derzhavnoyi Okhorony—formerly the Ninth Directorate of the KGB's Ukrainian SSR
Ukrainian SSR
The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic or in short, the Ukrainian SSR was a sovereign Soviet Socialist state and one of the fifteen constituent republics of the Soviet Union lasting from its inception in 1922 to the breakup in 1991...
branch and now a part of the SBU). Later, he joined President Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
's team of bodyguards and at the time of the scandal, Melnychenko held the rank of Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
. His main duty was to protect the President's office against possible eavesdropping
Eavesdropping
Eavesdropping is the act of secretly listening to the private conversation of others without their consent, as defined by Black's Law Dictionary...
.
Melnychenko is divorced with one daughter.
The 'Cassette Scandal'
On November 28, 2000, Ukrainian politician Oleksandr MorozOleksandr Moroz
Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Moroz is a Ukrainian statesman and politician. He was the Speaker of Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine twice: July 2006 to September 2007, and previously in 1994 through 1998. Moroz is one of the founders and leader of the Socialist Party of Ukraine, which was an influential...
publicly accused President Kuchma of involvement in the murder of Gongadze, naming Melnychenko as the source of information and playing selected recordings to journalists, starting the 'Cassette Scandal'. Days earlier Melnychenko had fled Ukraine to Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, where he left several bags containing dozens of CDs storing thousands of digital recordings. Melnychenko left Ukraine covertly with his family, breaking an official prohibition on leaving the country.
Melnychenko claimed that he acted alone when recording the President's conversations and then publishing them abroad. According to Melnychenko, he put an amateur digital
Digital audio
Digital audio is sound reproduction using pulse-code modulation and digital signals. Digital audio systems include analog-to-digital conversion , digital-to-analog conversion , digital storage, processing and transmission components...
dictaphone
Dictaphone
Dictaphone was an American company, a producer of dictation machines—sound recording devices most commonly used to record speech for later playback or to be typed into print. The name "Dictaphone" is a trademark, but in some places it has also become a common way to refer to all such devices, and...
under a sofa in Kuchma's office and was changing it every time he inspected the room. As the Major states, he was motivated purely by his disillusionment with what he perceived as the extremely corrupt nature of Kuchma's regime
Regime
The word regime refers to a set of conditions, most often of a political nature.-Politics:...
and "decided to document evidences of crimes" committed by the President. After the disappearance of Georgiy Gongadze, he supposedly decided to publish the recordings and protect his life. Then Melnychenko turned to his political sympathizer Oleksander Moroz for help, and received it.
Later, Melnychenko moved to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and received political asylum there. His tapes were eventually made available to the United States intelligence services and examined to determine their authenticity
Authentication
Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity...
and content. The authenticity of the whole file of tapes remains officially unconfirmed. However, U.S. forensic experts have officially analyzed the section of tapes concerning Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
issues and found it authentic.
The Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
authorities have issued an international search warrant
Search warrant
A search warrant is a court order issued by a Magistrate, judge or Supreme Court Official that authorizes law enforcement officers to conduct a search of a person or location for evidence of a crime and to confiscate evidence if it is found....
for Melnychenko, claiming that he is an 'important witness' and possible traitor of state secrets. However, no evidence of forced return or assassination efforts against Melnychenko were made public.
Many experts and journalists find Melnychenko's story highly questionable. In particular, they argue that:
- It is not clear why or how exactly Melnychenko started the operation. Being a career tech agent, he has never been involved in any kind of intelligenceIntelligence (information gathering)Intelligence assessment is the development of forecasts of behaviour or recommended courses of action to the leadership of an organization, based on a wide range of available information sources both overt and covert. Assessments are developed in response to requirements declared by the leadership...
, analysis or criminal investigation. Thus, he was unlikely to have information on the President's committing judicially proven crimes.
- The means of recording described by Melnychenko seems odd, both in technical and operative terms. Indeed, it is impossible to record about 500 hours of conversations by simply changing amateur dictaphoneDictaphoneDictaphone was an American company, a producer of dictation machines—sound recording devices most commonly used to record speech for later playback or to be typed into print. The name "Dictaphone" is a trademark, but in some places it has also become a common way to refer to all such devices, and...
once a day. Melnychenko's former commanding officers argue that even a very small device would be easily discovered during routine searches of the room conducted by several agents.
- The original device(s) used for recording, as well as the full file of recordings, have never been presented to journalists or Ukrainian prosecutors. Besides, Melnychenko should have known that a recording copied from digitalDigital audioDigital audio is sound reproduction using pulse-code modulation and digital signals. Digital audio systems include analog-to-digital conversion , digital-to-analog conversion , digital storage, processing and transmission components...
recorder will not be found authentic, making the whole idea of "documenting evidences" a nonsense.
Nevertheless, experts and politicians analyzing the recordings agree that at least some of them are real, judging by known voices, speaking manners and confidential details mentioned. A few politicians, including Kuchma himself, have officially claimed they recognize their own voices on the tapes. However, the President and his supporters have always denied the authenticity of the body of conversations recorded, calling them a "montage". On the other hand, in 2002 Bruce Koenig, of the US forensic firm Bek Tek, a former worker in the FBI's forensic laboratory, examined the recordings and concluded that there were no signs of them having been doctored.
Events following the scandal
After he received asylum, Melnychenko started to become actively involved in UkraineUkraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
's politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
and foreign relations
Foreign policy
A country's foreign policy, also called the foreign relations policy, consists of self-interest strategies chosen by the state to safeguard its national interests and to achieve its goals within international relations milieu. The approaches are strategically employed to interact with other countries...
, making comments for media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
and writing books based on his records. Most importantly, the Major continues to refuse to reveal details of the recording process or at least to present the whole volume of tapes. Although the CD "albums" of records are distributed throughout the world, Melnychenko has not indicated whether he is still in possession of further material. Instead, as critics argue, he is timing the publishing of information to coincide with certain political events. Analysts also claim that it is unusual that a number of Ukrainian politicians and statesmen, (including many well acquainted with Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Kuchma
Leonid Danylovych Kuchma was the second President of independent Ukraine from 19 July 1994, to 23 January 2005. Kuchma took office after winning the 1994 presidential election against his rival, incumbent Leonid Kravchuk...
) have never featured in the recordings, for example, Yevhen Marchuk
Yevhen Marchuk
Yevhen K. Marchuk , born on January 28, 1941, is a Ukrainian statesman and politician. During his career, Marchuk was prime minister of Ukraine, presidential candidate, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, and Defense Minister of Ukraine. Marchuk is affiliated with the Ukrainian...
—a KGB
KGB
The KGB was the commonly used acronym for the . It was the national security agency of the Soviet Union from 1954 until 1991, and was the premier internal security, intelligence, and secret police organization during that time.The State Security Agency of the Republic of Belarus currently uses the...
General and former Prime Minister of Ukraine
Prime Minister of Ukraine
The Prime Minister of Ukraine is Ukraine's head of government presiding over the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, which is the highest body of the executive branch of the Ukrainian government....
.
In 2004, Volodymyr Tsvil, a Ukrainian businessman and former KGB officer who supposedly assisted Melnychenko in his escape and further accommodation in the West, publicly accused him of not revealing certain details of the case.
On March 1, 2005 the criminal case against Melnychenko for "the disclosure of state secrets, abuse of office and using counterfeit documents" was closed.
Melnychenko tried to run in the Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
The Ukrainian presidential election of 2010 is Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The first round was held on January 17, 2010...
but was not registered as a candidate because he did not pay the mandatory election deposit of 2.5 million hryvnya.
On December 6, 2009 Melnychenko accused Volodymyr Lytvyn
Volodymyr Lytvyn
Volodymyr Mykhailovych Lytvyn is a Ukrainian politician and the current Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada, the Ukrainian parliament. Having previously served in that position from 2002 until 2006, he was re-elected in December 2008 after his party agreed to join the former coalition of Yulia...
of ordering the murder of journalist Georgiy Gongadze in 2000. A spokesperson for Lytvyn dismissed the claims as part of the 2010 Ukrainian presidential election
Ukrainian presidential election, 2010
The Ukrainian presidential election of 2010 is Ukraine's fifth presidential election since declaring independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The first round was held on January 17, 2010...
campaign.
On July 29, 2011 the criminal case against Melnychenko originally closed on March 1, 2005 was reopened. In October 2011 a arrest warrant against him was issued for "evading investigation and preventing the establishment of truth". According to Ukrainian press Melnychenko was living in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
at the time, he claimed he was in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
; he claimed because "There was a plan to physically exterminate me".