The United States government wants a series of strict, very specific measures to combat corruption in Ukraine in return for its help to the country invaded by Russia. According to the Ukrainian newspaper Pravda, which shared the letter from US Deputy National Security Advisor Mike Pyle to the Donor Coordination Platform, the White House is calling for concrete action, among others, from the courts, the Defense Department and regulators of state-owned companies. These measures must be taken in different time periods, from three months (most urgent) to a year and a half (most complicated).
The draft, which according to Ukrainian Pravda is still subject to changes and revisions, comes to light after a series of corruption scandals in Ukraine. Even as resistance grows in the United States among Republican sympathizers and lawmakers from that party’s hardest wing to continue supporting Ukraine indefinitely, even though the war has been going on for more than a year and a half and there are no signs of ending in the short term. . Among other things, these lawmakers are calling for greater transparency and accountability about how these funds are used. The United States has provided more than $75 billion (70 billion euros) in military, economic and humanitarian aid to Kiev.
The document, entitled “Reforms related to conditions of US aid,” will also be published when the US Congress must approve a budget measure before September 30 that includes an item of 24,000 million dollars (22,700 million euros) for Ukraine includes. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Republican and Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington on Thursday to urge members of Congress to continue supporting aid to their country. Otherwise, the Ukrainian head of state warns, the Western democratic value system is in danger.
During this visit, Zelensky also met with US President Joe Biden, who announced new military aid worth $325 million (€305 million).
Democrats, led by the White House, and the moderate wing of the Republican Party insist on the need to continue support for Ukraine “by whatever means necessary and for as long as necessary.” But the US government also points out that it wants to “ensure that there is accountability” in how this aid is used, as Matthew Miller, spokesman for the State Department, emphasized this Tuesday in his daily press conference.
Supporters of such aid insist that foregoing it would open the field to Russia at the gates of Europe and no country would be safe. They also point out that China is watching with interest what is happening in Ukraine and could interpret the withdrawal of US support from Kiev as a foretaste of what could happen in the event of a conflict with Taiwan.
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The conditions communicated by the White House are more precise than those published by the European Commission for Ukraine to start accession negotiations with the EU. The US government, for example, is demanding that the law be reformed in three months so that civil servants must declare their assets. This requirement is in line with the veto that Zelensky signed on September 12 against a law that postpones the obligation of MPs to disclose their assets.
The Ukrainian leader has stepped on the accelerator to bring about improvements in the justice system and the fight against corruption. The aim is to arrive at the European Council summit next December with the homework done and to officially begin talks on Ukraine’s admission to the EU.
Despite the haste, there is still a long way to go. According to the organization Transparency International, Ukraine ranks 116th (out of a list of 180) in terms of perceptions of corruption. Of the seven obligations that Kiev must fulfill to start EU accession negotiations, it would currently fulfill two. Two of them are not being adhered to – despite the improvements recognized by Brussels – namely the reforms to reduce corruption rates and also to ensure the independence of the judiciary.
Corruption scandals are as common in Ukraine as Zelensky’s dismissals linked to alleged bad practices. There are cases that the US demands document directly points to: The White House demands that the Defense Department adapt to NATO standards of transparency and accountability within a year. Oleksii Reznikov was sacked as defense minister in September this year following two allegations of corruption in the procurement of food and clothing for troops at prices well above market prices.
Another organization in which Zelensky has fired numerous high-ranking officials due to repeated allegations of corruption is the State Border Service. The Washington document concerns the necessary reforms in this department, which is dependent on the Interior Ministry. The Ukrainian president has even proposed a legal reform that would equate the crimes of wartime corruption with those of treason.
Thanks to Western financial and military support, the Ukrainian state remains in existence. And not only that: the country’s economy is growing again this quarter after GDP fell by 30% in the first year of the war in 2022. Europe and the United States are Ukraine’s main donors. According to calculations by the Kiev Institute for the World Economy, the EU has pledged almost 140 billion euros in aid – including military aid – and the USA 70 billion. There are regular official visits by delegations from the European Commission, the governments of the EU Member States and the United States to monitor the destination of their aid. But not only do these official visits take place, there are also representatives of these governments who, alongside the Ukrainian authorities, monitor the use of economic and military aid on site, as EL PAÍS was able to verify.
In its letter to the Ukrainian executive, Washington calls for greater controls on the distribution of these funds, especially those for the future reconstruction of the country. The US, like the EU, is calling for more pluralistic oversight boards for state-owned companies and stricter regulations to end the monopolies of oligarchs, the big fortunes that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
The Donor Coordination Platform was launched in January this year to support the reconstruction of Ukraine. Representatives from Kiev, the USA, the EU, the G-7 countries and international financial institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and the European Investment Bank are taking part.
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