Pompeo to advise Ukraine weapons company accused of corruption

Former CIA director and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is now advising a heavily scrutinized Ukrainian defense firm called Fire Point — which will allow him to benefit directly from the Western military aid to Ukraine he has frequently advocated for since the start of the war in 2022.

Pompeo's new role on Fire Point’s advisory board would essentially place him on both sides of any future deals. As a U.S. government official under the first Trump administration and former U.S Congressman, his frequent wartime calls for further military aid to Ukraine bear considerable influence in Washington — priming Fire Point to reap the benefits as it leads the Ukrainian market for long-range drones.

Quickly rising to prominence in war time, Fire Point is currently under scrutiny for its alleged price gouging practices, and for its ties to Tymur Mindich, a Zelensky associate being investigated for corruption charges. Critics also charge that the company has an unfair monopoly over the drone market. Earning about $1 billion this year, Fire Point is now constructing a factory in Denmark.

Pompeo’s new role continues a pattern of reported wartime conflicts of interest. RS reported last summer that Pompeo stood to benefit from the “Trump Peace Plan” he proposed in the WSJ, which called for Ukraine to join the EU, and for a $500 billion "lend lease" program for Ukraine to buy U.S. weapons. As a director at prominent Ukrainian telecom company Kyivstar, Pompeo would have stood to gain from the economic benefits Kyivstar realized through Ukraine’s EU ascension, had his “Peace Plan” been realized.