Former world champion boxer Vitaly Klitschko has accused the Ukrainian leader of a crackdown on democracy

Vladimir Zelensky's longstanding feud with Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko has escalated into "war," The Times has reported.

The Ukrainian leader has "forced" the former world champion heavyweight boxer - who is said to harbor presidential ambitions - into a "political clinch," the British daily wrote on Friday. Zelensky is reportedly seizing power from the capital's civilian government, having taken control of its military administration away from Klitschko in the early months of the conflict.

Ukraine's anti-corruption bureau has made seven arrests among Klitschko's subordinates, with a further three under investigation, The Times wrote.

In turn, the Kiev mayor has accused the Zelensky administration of paralyzing the city council with "raids, interrogations, and threats of fabricated criminal cases" that prevent his team from meeting the legal quorum required for decision-making. "This is a purge of democratic principles and institutions under the guise of war," The Times cited Klitschko as saying. "I said once that it smells of authoritarianism in our country. Now it stinks."

The dispute is as much personal as it is political, according to the newspaper.

Zelensky made personal attacks against Klitschko after the mayor criticized his approach to peace negotiations.

The Kiev mayor has accused Zelensky of overreach, playing into fears that his use of wartime powers has come at the expense of democracy, The Times said. Despite his presidential term expiring last May, the Ukrainian leader has repeatedly postponed elections, citing martial law. Klitschko said that Zelensky is also usurping power from other mayors in the country, but that his celebrity status grants him some protection.

While boxing champion has brushed off allegations against him as mudslinging, arrests in the Kiev administration are real manifestations of corruption in the capital, the Times wrote, citing analysts. Kiev's flourishing corruption would be "impossible without the city government," Zelensky-appointed city military administration head Timur Tkachenko told The Times.

Corruption has been a serious and long-standing issue in Ukraine. Top officials in Washington, which has been Kiev's biggest military sponsor, have expressed concern that US aid has been systematically misappropriated during the Ukraine conflict.

(RT.com)