The article discusses Ukraine‘s fight against government corruption and the impact of the ongoing war with Russia on this effort. Here are the main points:
1. Corruption in Ukraine is a persistent issue, despite efforts to combat it since 2014.
2. The war has created new opportunities for corruption, including martial law, classified defense procurement, and draft evasion schemes.
3. The Ukrainian government has not made fighting corruption a priority, claiming that it’s focusing fully on winning the war.
4. Corruption is undermining Ukraine’s capacity to defend itself, with issues such as draft office corruption affecting manpower and high-level procurement corruption affecting supplies.
5. Despite setbacks, the demand for ending corruption in Ukrainian society remains strong, and there are efforts to reform the anti-corruption infrastructure, including appointing a new chief anti-corruption prosecutor.
6. Some progress has been made, such as re-launching judicial governing bodies and vetting judges, but this process has also been marred by controversy.
Overall, the article suggests that while some progress has been made in combating corruption in Ukraine, more needs to be done to address this persistent issue, particularly during times of crisis like war.