Veon added former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (pictured) to the board of its Ukrainian subsidiary Kyivstar, a move coming shortly after the company became embroiled in row about corporate rights in the country.

Pompeo was appointed as a non-executive director, with Veon CEO Kaan Terzioglu selected as chair of the Kyivstar board.

Veon stated the appointments reflects its “commitment to Ukraine and to the recovery and reconstruction of the country”.

Pompeo served as the US Secretary of State from 2018 to 2021, during which he played a prominent role in the country’s long-running campaign to push allies to ban the use of Huawei 5G equipment.

He is currently a partner at Impact Investments, a newly established US strategic and financial advisory, and investment company.

Pompeo said it was through private enterprise and investments that Ukraine will secure its economic future.

Veon has pledged to invest $600 million in Ukraine over the next three years and sold its operation in Russia due to the ongoing war between the countries.

However, it came under fire from the Security Services of Ukraine (SSU) last month, which froze Kyivstar’s corporate rights as part of measures to crack down on the interests of sanctioned individuals, including Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman.

Fridman founded LetterOne Investment Holdings, which holds a 48 per cent stake in Veon.

However, he is no longer on the board of either company.

Veon subsequently filed legal motions challenging the freeze, emphasising corporate rights in the operator belong exclusively to it and Fridman owns none of its shares in Kyivstar.