The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has notified former Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov of a new suspicion and exposed an official of a district administration in Kyiv who wrote speeches for his performances on the Russian television.

"The Security Service has documented new crimes of former Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov, who is suspected of high treason. While escaping from justice outside Ukraine, he actively cooperates with the Russian special services and carries out their instructions to hold undermining activities against our country," the SBU said on the Telegram channel on Thursday.

According to the Ukrainian special service, Azarov has been spreading the Kremlin's narratives in his commentaries to enemy propagandists, including on talks shows.

In particular, he regularly justifies Russia's armed aggression, temporary occupation of part of Ukraine and spreads fakes about the military and political leadership of Ukraine.

"The texts of Azarov's public speeches were prepared by his assistant, who is an incumbent public official at a district administration of Kyiv," the SBU said.

The perpetrator did this even after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it said.

"She also remotely agreed with representatives of Russian and Belarusian media outlets on the time and subject of his participation in live shows or written commentaries. The official communicated with Azarov and enemy propagandists not only from her own home but also from her office at the state institution," the SBU said.

The official also administered the former prime minister's Telegram and YouTube channels, as well as his private accounts in social media.

According to the SBU, it has also been established that the exposed official from Kyiv is the head of one of the divisions of the Humanitarian Support Fund, created by Azarov to finance the anti-Ukrainian Committee for the Rescue of Ukraine.

"Through these institutions, the defendant regularly received payments for her services," the SBU said.

During the searches, the defendant was found to have computer equipment and a mobile phone, which she used to communicate with the fugitive prime minister, his assistant from Moscow and Russian propagandists.

Based on the collected evidence, SBU investigators informed Azarov of suspicion under four articles of the Criminal Code of Ukraine: Part 2 of Article 111 (high treason committed under martial law), Part 2 of Article 28 and Article 109 (actions aimed at violent change or overthrow of the constitutional order or the seizure of state power, committed by prior conspiracy), Part 2 of Article 110 (encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine), Part 2 of Article 436-2 (justification, recognition as lawful, denial of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine, glorification of its participants).

Previously, Azarov's criminal actions were qualified under Part 1 of Article 111 (high treason) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

As for the exposed official of the district administration, the SBU reports that the issue of choosing a preventive measure in the form of detention is being decided. Comprehensive measures are ongoing to bring all defendants to justice.

The investigation was carried out under the procedural leadership of Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office.