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Years before she took up her current role advising Ukraine’s parliament, a lawyer who now works in a key legislative support office was involved in projects that received funding from a Russian government–backed foundation, according to a new investigation based on leaked documents.
The revelation made by Schemes, the investigative unit of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Ukrainian service, draws on internal records from Pravfond, a foundation established by the Russian government to support so-called “compatriots” abroad. Pravfond is sanctioned by the European Union.
Schemes identified the official as Yana Salmina, a lawyer who, since 2019, has served as one of the main consultants in the Verkhovna Rada’s Main Scientific Expert Department, which prepares analyses lawmakers must review before voting.
According to Schemes, Salmina authored or co-authored at least 250 opinions reviewed across 17 parliamentary committees, with much of her work focused on agriculture and land policy.
She also provided expert input at least three times after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine to the Parliament’s national security, defense, and intelligence committee.
Leaked grant applications and financial records reviewed by Schemes show that in 2016, Pravfond awarded a grant of over 500,000 rubles (about $8,500) to an organization headed by Salmina’s husband for her Center for Minority Rights, the project’s primary executor. The funds were intended to support the production of analytical reports and the organizing of a roundtable discussion in Kyiv on minority rights.
According to the grant materials cited by Schemes, the project included the commissioning of Russian-language materials, which would support claims arguing that Russian speakers faced discrimination in Ukraine and criticizing what the documents characterized as “forced Ukrainization.”
A Ukrainian bank later blocked the account that received the funds shortly before the planned event, according to the leaked correspondence, prompting Salmina to complain that the action was unlawful. The roundtable went ahead nonetheless, with discussions focusing largely on Hungarian and Russian minority issues.
Altogether, from 2012 to 2016, Yana Salmina, according to the leaked documents, may have received a total of up to 20 million rubles, or half a million dollars, of Pravfond funding to the two Ukrainian NGOs she was engaged with: one headed by her and one led by her husband.
Schemes called Yana Salmina to ask her whether she was receiving Russian funds for her projects, but she immediately hung up when she heard the question. She didn’t respond to the follow-up written request for comment by the time of publication.
Her supervisor, the head of the Main Scientific and Expert Directorate of Ukraine’s parliament, also declined to comment.
Viacheslav Shtuchnyi, Secretary General of the Verkhovna Rada, said in a written statement that his agency “adheres to the principles of zero tolerance, in particular towards any threats to national security.” He added that he had launched an internal review of Salmina and forwarded Schemes’ findings to the State Security Service and the National Agency on Corruption Prevention, requesting further checks.
Schemes also reported that Salmina was observed entering and leaving a Kyiv apartment owned since 2014 by her father, Oleg Salmin, a Russian citizen who resides near Moscow and has in recent years earned substantial sums from Russia’s Defense Ministry and companies linked to Rostec, the state-owned defense conglomerate which controls major manufacturers of fighter jets and drones used in the war against Ukraine.
Income records reviewed by Schemes indicate that he received nearly 14 million rubles, or about $200,000, over the past decade from the Russian Defense Ministry and defense-industrial companies, many of them under international sanctions. The investigation did not find evidence that Salmina was involved in her father’s business activities or received income from them.
Salmina’s car was repeatedly seen parked in front of the building on Chavdar Street in Kyiv, and she and her family were seen leaving it.
Schemes called Oleg Salmin and asked him whether he stays in touch with his daughter, who appears to be living in his Kyiv apartment. He hung up and didn’t respond to the written request for comment.
Under Ukraine’s wartime legal framework, authorities may seek the seizure of assets tied to certain Russia-linked individuals through a sanctions and court process if authorities determine that the person’s activities pose a threat to national security.
In response to questions from Schemes, the Justice Ministry said such cases require a “proper and sufficient evidence base” from competent authorities and noted that dozens of confiscation decisions have already been issued, with more pending.
The findings follow earlier leak-based reporting on Pravfond’s operations in Ukraine. In November, OCCRP and Schemes reported that leaked emails showed Pravfond-backed activities carried out under the guise of “legal aid,” including compiling reports for Russian authorities and advising men on how to avoid military conscription.
OCCRP’s “Dear Compatriots” investigation also found that Pravfond continued to move money through the European Union even after it was sanctioned in June 2023, using intermediaries, third-party accounts and cash couriers.
