Berlinskaya commented on the missile strike on Chernihiv during a drone exhibition
A meeting of the Verkhovna Rada’s Temporary Investigative Commission, which addresses issues of defense, anti-corruption policy, and human rights compliance during martial law, was held in Kyiv. The commission’s chair, MP Oleksiy Honcharenko, questioned volunteer Maria Berlinska about the events of 2023, when Russians struck a gathering of drone builders in Chernihiv.
This was reported by a UA.News correspondent.
Berlinska: Unfortunately, you slandered me on your social media, Oleksiy, but since 2018 I have lived in the United States; all my assets were honestly earned there. Taxes have been paid on them. Valentin Nalyvaichenko knows this too. Therefore, unlike many Ukrainian government officials, members of parliament, judges, prosecutors, and so on, I have no suspicious assets in Ukraine. This is very easy to verify.
Former Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Bohdan claims that you have been cooperating with the SBU since organizing a drone manufacturers’ exhibition in Chernihiv in 2023, which was subsequently attacked by Russian occupiers. How would you comment on this?
Berlinskaya: How does this relate to the “Midas” case?
It is directly related because it took place during martial law. Our commission is examining issues related to the defense sector during martial law. Therefore, there is a direct connection. I’ll ask you again.
Berlinska: Look, first of all, I have already commented on this issue many times. First, there was no exhibition. It was a closed meeting of manufacturers, engineers, and military personnel initiated by engineers, military personnel, and manufacturers from the Chernihiv side. It is true that our volunteers were co-organizers, but only among them; I personally was not, as the Russian media immediately portrayed it in the first few minutes, the main organizer or anything of the sort. It is clear that I was not involved in choosing the venue, setting the date, or anything else. Essentially, my role was simply to come and be one of a good dozen speakers. That’s all. But the Russians very actively spread this myth to discredit me personally. This happened repeatedly on Russian TV channels in an effort to halt our work as much as possible.
Let me remind you, we have essentially created a massive technological machine for defeating the Russians, having trained over 160,000 soldiers to date to use technology against the occupiers. It is clear that they are doing this with great enthusiasm.
Prior to this, Berlinska categorically refused to speak with Goncharenko in the Rada, since he had previously supported the “Russian World” in Odesa and had not apologized to her for the false accusation of ties to Mindich.
Maria Berlinska also rejected accusations of corrupt collaboration with Timur Mindich and FirePoint.
Meanwhile, aviation engineer and drone specialist Yuriy Kasyanov, while testifying at a meeting of the temporary investigative commission, called FirePoint’s claim that it produces 7,000 ballistic missiles per year a technical absurdity.
