Ukraine has failed to implement reforms on which billions in EU funds depend

Ukraine has made virtually no progress on key justice and anti-corruption reforms required to receive further financial assistance from the European Union.

This is reported by the German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung.

“In effect, the agreement stipulates that the EU will pay out additional billions in aid only if Ukraine combats corruption within the country. But the reforms have stalled,” the publication noted.

Ukraine and the EU agreed on ten steps that Kyiv was required to complete back in December 2025. However, more than half a year later, according to the publication, “not one of the central reforms in the areas of justice, law enforcement, and anti-corruption has been implemented.”

Last week, a Verkhovna Rada committee refused to place five urgent reforms demanded by the European Union on its agenda. These include expanding the powers of NABU and the SAP, strengthening the independence of the Office of the Prosecutor General and the State Bureau of Investigations, and repealing provisions that hinder the investigation of corruption cases.

Süddeutsche Zeitung also writes about attempts by the Office of the President to influence the selection of heads of anti-corruption bodies, and recalls the new corruption scandal surrounding Iryna Mudra, the deputy head of the Office of the President.

According to an EU representative, whether Ukraine receives more than EUR 8 billion in aid this year depends on the fulfillment of 27 agreed-upon reforms.

In June, the International Monetary Fund agreed to disburse the next tranche of an ongoing loan to Ukraine, despite Kyiv’s failure to meet a key condition regarding the taxation of international parcels.