Ukraine’s Missile Maker Fire Point Named in New ‘Mindich Tapes’ Scandal – What Happened?

The mention of one of Ukraine’s rising stars in defense tech, in purportedly leaked calls implicating a former defense minister, has raised fresh questions about the company. Make us preferred on Google Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied The FP-5 “Flamigo” missile made by Ukrainian arms maker Fire Point (Photo via Fire Point’s website) Content Share Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn Bluesky Email Copy Copied Flip Make us preferred on Google Fire Point, Ukraine’s defense tech rising star and the maker of the Flamingo cruise missile, was just named in the so-called “Mindich tapes.” The newly released files – leaked by unknown sources and presented only in transcript form – allegedly contain conversations between Tymur Mindich, a former business associate of President Volodymyr Zelensky who is wanted in an energy kickback scheme, and Rustem Umerov, then defense minister and now head of Ukraine’s delegation in US-led peace talks. Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official . In the transcript, Fire Point’s operations, funding and production were discussed. Here’s a point-by-point breakdown of who Mindich is, how Fire Point is mentioned, and what those references entail, bearing in mind that the authenticity of the transcripts has yet to be confirmed. The recordings implicate members of Ukraine’s Cabinet in corruption. The conversations took place in July 2025 between Mindich and various officials and covered different kickback schemes. In the latest recording, whose transcripts were published by local outlet Ukrainska Pravda on Thursday, Mindich and Umerov were heard discussing housing and defense projects, with Mindich allegedly urging Umerov to facilitate certain processes. However, only written transcripts were published, not audio files, fueling heated debate over whether the recordings are authentic. Critics have also questioned whether, if genuine, they may have been improperly leaked from an active criminal investigation before any court ruling. Other Topics of Interest Su-57s Struck, New F-16 Simulators, and Potential Demobilization – Ukraine Latest, May 1 Russia’s Starlink ban, updates on Russia’s May 9 ceasefire proposal, Ukraine’s new military overhaul – updates from Ukraine and beyond The source of the leak remains unclear, adding further uncertainty to the situation. The most closely scrutinized exchanges in the recordings came from those with then-Defense Minister Umerov. Readers were struck by the tone of the conversations, in which Mindich appears to lecture Umerov and advise the minister on how he should act in a range of situations. That dynamic drew strong reactions on social media, where many questioned how a private individual already tied to an investigation could be speaking to the defense minister of a country at war in such terms. Ukrainska Pravda journalist Mykhailo Tkach reading the “Mindich tapes,” reaching a point in which Mindich (left) and Umerov (right) were talking about Fire Point. (Screenshot from Pravda.com.ua) The most controversial moment, however, centered on a single passage. In it, Mindich allegedly asks for additional funding for Fire Point, promising to “produce more ballistics than the Americans” – an apparent reference to ballistic missiles. Umerov allegedly responds that the company had already received substantial state funding. “So many billions for missiles… I understand everything, but this is too much, brother,” the transcript quotes him as saying. It was this exchange, taken from nearly two hours of alleged recordings, that sparked the latest scandal. Fire Point is a young Ukrainian defense company behind some of Kyiv’s most notable long-range strike systems. It produces the FP-1 and FP-2 drones, which reportedly account for a large share of Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russian territory. The company also develops the FP-5 Flamingo cruise missile , reportedly capable of carrying a 1,150-kilogram (2,540-pound) payload, and has publicly demonstrated tests of a Ukrainian medium-range ballistic missile while pledging further production. Speculation about Fire Point’s links to Mindich first surfaced during the autumn “Mindichgate” scandal, when one of the company’s employees reportedly appeared in earlier recordings. Because Fire Point has received significant state funding, some observers suspected Mindich had ties to the company. The newly published transcripts appear to strengthen those suspicions, with Mindich allegedly using language suggesting he is a beneficiary of Fire Point – contradicting his earlier denials of any ties to the company in comments to Ukrainska Pravda. If true, that could significantly alter perceptions of the relationship between a company producing some of Ukraine’s most effective strike weapons and the state. The issue is particularly sensitive because Mindich has been wanted by Ukrainian law enforcement since the autumn and is under Ukrainian sanctions. “[Anti-corruption agencies] will continue to push their agenda. I don’t know what they are currently dividing with Umerov. But Mindich as the company’s beneficiary is a serious legal problem. If this turns out to be true,” a source in the Ministry of Defense told Kyiv Post. The allegations could also pose reputational risks for Fire Point, given Mindich’s reported role in a major corruption scandal. Mindich is a former associate of Zelensky who is wanted for corruption. He first found himself at the center of a scandal in the summer of 2025, and again that autumn, after it emerged that he had been wiretapped by Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU). The case was politically sensitive because media reports described Mindich as having close ties to Zelensky, including claims that the president had ridden in his car and visited his apartment. Investigators later linked Mindich to an alleged corruption scheme in the energy sector, sparking major outrage in Ukraine amid years of Russian strikes targeting the country’s power infrastructure. The tapes also implicated two ministers in an alleged kickback program, leading to their resignation and contributing to a major government reshuffle . A criminal case was opened, and Mindich, along with several other suspects, reportedly fled Ukraine. He was later placed on Ukraine’s sanctions list. One of the first major institutions to react was the Public Anti-Corruption Council under the Ministry of Defense . In a statement, the council argued that Mindich’s potential ties to Fire Point could be detrimental to the company and its ability to supply arms to Ukraine. “The company ‘Fire Point’ will completely lose the ability to supply its products to the Defense Forces of Ukraine due to the fact that Tymur Mindich is on the sanctions list. It is already clear that the company ‘Fire Point’ provided knowingly false information regarding its beneficiaries. And, as a result, it must receive a fine and obtain a risk status for suppliers,” the statement says. They called for the company’s nationalization so that it would not be associated with a sanctioned businessman. “The PAC MoD calls on: …. The President of Ukraine as Head of the National Security and Defense Council to initiate the process of selective (partial) nationalization of the company ‘Fire Point’ from Ukrainian residents, which will allow, subject to certain conditions, to continue uninterrupted supply of products to the front without enriching persons involved in corruption abuses,” the statement adds. But not everyone agrees with the approach. Andriy Kobolyev , the former head of the board of Naftogaz of Ukraine, said that “nationalization will simply kill this company.” “Why? Because as soon as the management of this company feels the full depth of wisdom and fairness of state corporate governance, they will pack their things and resign that very day. Or within a week or a month they will end up in a pre-trial detention center for making expenditures without approval of the financial plan with some young inexperienced specialist… from the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine,” Kobolyev wrote. The company denied the information, calling it “a targeted information attack and an attempt to destroy the reputation of one of the best and most effective weapons manufacturers in Ukraine.” “Fire Point categorically denies the information spread in the so-called ‘journalistic’ investigations, including those by Ukrainska Pravda. Everything presented as a sensation is outright falsehood based solely on rumors and fabrications,” Fire Point co-owner Denys Shtilerman wrote in a statement on April 30. “This is a targeted information attack and an attempt to destroy the reputation of one of the best and most effective weapons manufacturers in Ukraine,” he continued. Shtilerman also suspects a deeper conspiracy, staged by competitors, is at play. “We do not rule out that these actions are driven by competitors seeking to deprive us of funding, halt contracts, and shut down our enterprise,” Shtilerman added. The company also sent a letter to NABU and called for a clear answer on whether the recordings are authentic and whether they constitute materials of a criminal case. Some Ukrainians think corruption should be stopped, while others portray it as a necessary evil if it means getting the country the ammo it needs. Daria Kaleniuk , co-founder and executive director of the Kyiv-based Anti-Corruption Action Center, said corruption has no place when the country is being bombed daily. “A private company receives Hr.312 billion [$7 billion] in orders! That is more than half of Ukraine’s annual weapons budget. The company’s beneficiary, businessman Mindich, is simultaneously siphoning off $100 million through corruption schemes from the state company Energoatom,” Kaleniuk wrote. “During a full-scale war. During shelling of our cities. When our children were sitting in bomb shelters without electricity and heat. This is a terrible series we are living in,” she added. But Yuriy Romanenko , an analyst and a public figure, argued otherwise, saying some “imperfect people” can be “doing the right things that strengthen Ukraine’s sovereignty.” “The essence of the moment is that some imperfect people are doing the right things that strengthen Ukraine’s sovereignty, while other imperfect people – consciously or unconsciously – are destroying sovereignty under the banner of ‘ideal state policy,’ which these same imperfect people have repeatedly failed whenever they held public office,” Romanenko wrote. Tetiana Chornovol , a Ukrainian military officer and a former lawmaker, shared similar views. “I myself have not yet decided how to treat successful managers of the ‘disposal of Muscovites’ who have a very negative, even anti-state past and are generally monstrous as people. What should be done with this?” she wrote. “I have long been in a moral stupor. After all, they are saving my life personally. If not for their creations, the Muscovites on the front line would have crushed me long ago,” she added. Anatoliy Tkachuk , a former lawmaker and an engineer who developed systems for Soviet fighter jets, said there are “no white coats” in wars and praised the achievement of the Flamingo missile – even though it’s not perfect. “I read that the Flamingo ‘hits weakly’ and is often shot down. But the very fact that the missile appeared in two years deserves respect,” Tkachuk said. “Why the company is being attacked now – there are many assumptions. In war, there are no white coats. The main thing is that this attack does not become a blow to our defense. This already happened in 2018-19: klystrons, helicopter screws, special equipment for Su-27,” he added. Tkachuk recalled the precedent of 2018-19 for a reason. A similar scandal broke out in the final months of Petro Poroshenko’s presidency, in the spring of 2019. At the center of the scandal were individuals who were the children and associates of one of Poroshenko’s closest allies – Oleh Hladkovskyi. They ran a company that arranged deliveries through third countries of Soviet and Russian spare parts for Soviet fighter aircraft in service with Ukraine, for which Ukraine could not openly obtain parts directly from Russia (which has been waging war against Ukraine since 2014). At that time, conversations about the figures were actively spread online. The negotiations, conducted in a casual tone laced with obscenities and discussions of prices and allegedly inflated markups for the parts, triggered a scandal that many believed dealt a major blow to Poroshenko’s standing ahead of the elections. At the time, however, questions remained over whether critical aircraft parts sourced through black-market channels – where no standard market prices exist – could realistically be obtained at lower cost. In the seven years since, the case against those involved has seen little progress. How the current scandal will affect the company remains unclear. As of midday May 1, there had been no public response from state authorities.