Ukraine confirms former top prosecutor as new ambassador in Bern

Iryna Venediktova, pictured in June 2022. Keystone / Ludovic Marin / Pool

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has signed a decree confirming his country’s selection of Iryna Venediktova as the new ambassador to Switzerland.

A document on the president’s website, reported by the Ukrainian state news agency Ukrinform on Thursday, follows up on the initial proposal of Venediktova in August.

Venediktova worked as Ukraine’s prosecutor general before being fired – along with the head of the domestic security agency – in July 2022. At the time, Zelensky saidExternal link he had asked parliament to remove the two officials after it emerged that many members of their agencies had collaborated with Russia.

During her time as prosecutor general, Venediktova was involved in efforts to investigate the huge numbers of alleged war crimes and crimes of aggression committed by Russia since the start of its invasion in February.

After being removed from her post, Venediktova pledged to keep working for her country. In proposing her as ambassador to Switzerland in August, Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba stressed that she had the competencies for the role, particularly on the international front.

It’s not clear when she will take up the posting in Bern. The current ambassador extraordinary to Switzerland, Artem Rybchenko, has been in the job since June 2018.