Washington is more concerned about corruption in Ukraine than it publicly states – Politico

The United States is concerned about the level of corruption in Ukraine and views addressing it as a condition for continued Western support.

This information reported according to Politico, which reviewed a report from the U.S. Department of State on this matter.

The report reveals that the Biden administration is more concerned about corruption in Ukraine than it publicly acknowledges.

“It emphasizes that corruption could lead Western allies to withdraw their support for Ukraine’s fight against Russian aggression, and that Kyiv cannot delay efforts to combat corruption. The existence of high-level corruption could undermine trust in the Ukrainian government among both the Ukrainian public and foreign leaders during a time of war”, according to Politico.

Interestingly, the Department of State had published a shorter version of this report publicly a month ago, with less emphasis on corruption, to avoid providing additional arguments against aid to Ukraine from its opponents in Washington.

The expanded version of the report contains more specifics about planned steps, including privatizing banks, expanding English language education in schools, encouraging the Ukrainian Armed Forces to adopt NATO protocols, and reforming the national security apparatus to make it more decentralized. Many of these goals are aimed at reducing corruption.

In the early years of the conflict, the United States paid less attention to this issue behind the scenes, although it had long been a concern. However, now, Americans are increasingly insisting on addressing the issue of corruption publicly and privately.

“There are honest conversations happening behind the scenes,” said one source cited by the publication.

Another source confirms that combating corruption will be a condition for future economic and military aid.

Politico views the dismissal of the leadership of the Ministry of Defense as a signal that President Volodymyr Zelensky is “listening.”

Other expected reforms include:

• Forming a professional junior officer and non-commissioned officer corps in line with NATO doctrine.
• Creating a “national-level resistance plan,” which could mean that ordinary Ukrainians will resist if Russia captures more territory.
• Developing Ukraine’s own military equipment.
• De-oligarchization, especially in the energy and mining sectors (notably, this condition would be impossible to fulfill without taking businesses away from influential Ukrainian oligarchs).
• Antimonopoly measures to stimulate increased tax revenues.
• Increasing lending to stimulate business expansion and reducing the state’s role in the banking sector, with SENS Bank (formerly Alfa Bank) returning to private ownership.
• Appointing over 2,000 new judges and addressing more than 9,000 complaints of judges’ misconduct.
• Expanding the number of U.S. consulates in Ukraine.

As reported, the United States is already assisting the Ukrainian Accounting Chamber in improving its auditing work, including better tracking of direct budget support from Washington.