The European Union directly demanded that Ukraine appoint the head of the Bureau of Economic Security

The European Union has openly demanded that Kyiv appoint a head of the bureau of economic security (BES).

The demand was made by European Commission spokesperson Guillaume Mercier in a comment to Suspilne.

He stated that the appointment is necessary for reforming the bureau, which “is part of Ukraine’s broader commitments under the EU accession process.”

In June, the selection commission recommended that the cabinet of ministers appoint Oleksandr Tsyvynsky, head of the detective unit at the second main division of the national anti-corruption bureau of Ukraine, as director of BES.

However, the government refused to approve Tsyvynsky, citing a security assessment from the security service of Ukraine (SBU) concerning “national security matters and relevant risk evaluations.” The cabinet proposed that the commission present two candidates from which it would choose one to appoint.

In response, the selection commission rejected the cabinet’s decision to hold a new vote and continued to insist that Tsyvynsky be appointed to the post.