Ukraine's State Guard Department denies the involvement of its military man in the wiretapping in the office of Prime Minister Oleksiy Honcharuk.

"The State Guard Department of Ukraine openly cooperates with the Security Service of Ukraine in criminal proceedings regarding illegal wiretapping of Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy Honcharuk to remove any possible suspicions of involvement of servicemen of the State Guard Department of Ukraine in this incident," the department's press service said on Facebook.

The department asked media representatives to refrain from disseminating unverified guesses and rumors until the relevant law enforcement authorities announce the official results of the investigation into the specified case.

As previously reported, a number of media outlets disseminated information that the SBU's Main Investigation Department suspects involvement in the installation of wiretapping equipment in Honcharuk's negotiation room and the transfer of recordings of employees of the State Guard.

On January 16, 2020, a number of Telegram channels circulated an audio recording in which several people discuss the preparation of an economic policy report for the president, as well as the causes and possible effects of a stronger hryvnia. A person whose voice resembles [Prime Minister of Ukraine Oleksiy] Honcharuk's says the president has "primitive" notions about economics and refers to himself as "clueless about economics." The conversation was said to have been recorded on December 16. In addition to Honcharuk, the meeting was supposedly attended by National Bank of Ukraine Deputy Chairperson Kateryna Rozhkova, Finance Minister Oksana Markarova, deputy chief of the presidential office Yulia Kovaliv and others.