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On social media, information is being spread claiming that in its piece, the American outlet Bloomberg explained why Ukraine should not be provided with assistance. Among the alleged reasons cited are a corruption scandal in the energy sector, a “chaotic and ineffective” governance system, a decline in trust in the authorities, and a “rollback” of Ukraine’s EU membership application.
However, this is a manipulation. The Bloomberg article does not say that Ukraine should not be helped. The author merely notes that Russian propaganda will use the corruption scandal to promote the thesis that aid is futile. 
Screenshot of the post
The post completely distorted the content of the Bloomberg column published on November 12, 2025, under the headline “Why Do Ukrainians Fight? A $100 Million Graft Case Shows Why” The piece does not claim at all that Ukraine should not be helped. On the contrary, the author writes that such claims will be spread by Russian propagandists, trolls, and bots, using the corruption scandal to their advantage.
“Russia’s propagandists, trolls, bots and fellow travelers will have a field day. For here, surely, is proof positive that Ukraine is not worth helping, that any money given will be stolen, that it is — for all high-flying talk of democracy — no better than or different from its attacker. Kyiv’s EU membership bid, surely, just took a great leap backward,” the piece says. Thus, this is not the author’s position but merely a description of manipulative messages that Ukraine’s opponents will promote amid the corruption scandal in the energy sector.
Moreover, the author notes that the exposure of the corruption scheme was made possible by independent anti-corruption institutions created after the Revolution of Dignity, with the support of the United States and the EU. He emphasizes that the fight against corruption continues even during a full-scale war: “Yet the true surprise should be that an alleged conspiracy to skim $100 million from the nation’s life and death efforts to keep lights and heat on has been exposed. Not just that, but that the exposure was official, made public after a 15-month investigation …”
The column also reminds that the independence of anti-corruption institutions is a requirement of the EU for further rapprochement with Ukraine: “This is what EU candidacy demands — not the absence of corruption, but government support for an independent judiciary in the fight against it, no matter where that leads..”
In addition, this is not an editorial piece, but an opinion column by author Marc Champion — it sets out his personal views, which do not necessarily coincide with the position of Bloomberg’s editorial board or owners.
Attention
The authors do not work for, consult to, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have no relevant affiliations
