Defending? Not really, theyre all basically crooked - call it playing Devils advocate - after all he never was really punished....was he? as if the folks taking him down were white knights doing Gods work. They were simply removing an obstacle that threatens their own corrupt dealings. No different than Trump. It would seem their basis for doing so wasn’t not even very solid- so it begs the question why him. But I disgress. Ukraine was and is a bastion of corruption. Certainly removing a single oligarch or a single state prosecutor isnt going to make a big difference...is it?
Devils advocate again.... should the oligarch go to jail for charges in which evidence to convict him doesnt exist? Just because you prefer what you imagine to be the good guys are doing the bidding?
Russians taught the Ukrainian oligarchs their chops, which is why the rank and file in Ukraine wants nothing more to do with Moscow, why they threw out Yanukovich, and why they elected Zalensky. They want to join the EU, because they want Rule of Law, respect for national borders, a succession principle, and a market economy.
Follow the Kyiv Post and Ukraine Today on the web for a while and you will see that ordinary Ukrainians want their country cleaned up, and Zelensky's government IS trying to make headway. Which is why Ukrainians chose a guy who was neither one of the oligarchs nor one of the old Soviet nomenklatura at the first opportunity.
This multipart editorial is enlightening, if you're willing to put prejudice aside:
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/33086
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/33091
https://www.kyivpost.com/post/33093