Latest news with #VolodymyrZelenskyy
The Guardian
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Ukraine war briefing: Anti-corruption agencies endorse bill restoring their independence
The Ukrainian anti-corruption body, Nabu, said a new bill submitted to parliament on Thursday 'restores all procedural powers and guarantees of independence of the Nabu and Sapo'. Nabu investigates corruption cases and Sapo prosecutes them. A Nabu statement said both agencies took part in the preparation of the new law and they urged the parliament 'to adopt the president's initiative … in its entirety as soon as possible. This will prevent threats to criminal proceedings brought by the Nabu and the Sapo.' The EU welcomed Volodymyr Zelenskyy's move to reinstate the independence of the anti-corruption agencies after the shock adoption this week of a bill that stripped their autonomy. After protests on the streets and from international allies of Ukraine, the Ukrainian president said the further bill would ensure the rule of law and the independence of the anti-corruption agencies. An EU spokesperson said: 'We provide significant financial support to Ukraine and this is conditional to progress and transparency, judicial reform and democratic governance.' Those points were reinforced by European leaders with whom Zelenskyy consulted over the crisis, including Ursula von der Leyen, Friedrich Merz of Germany and the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer. There were tensions over the Ukraine war as EU officials met the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, in Beijing on Thursday. Antonio Costa, the European Council president, said the EU officials discussed 'at length' their expectations for China to discourage Russia in its war against Ukraine. The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, prior to the meeting said China was 'enabling Russia's war economy'. Xi told EU to 'properly handle differences and frictions … The current challenges facing Europe do not come from China.' A Russian attack killed three family members already displaced by the war, authorities announced on Thursday. The father, mother and son had fled to the village of Pidlyman in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine after Russian forces invaded their home town. A strike later on Kharkiv city wounded 33 people, including a 10-year-old girl, a 17-year-old boy and girl, the governor said. A separate Russian drone and missile barrage wounded seven people including a child in the central Ukrainian region of Cherkasy, emergency services said. The US state department on Thursday said it had approved military sales worth US$330m to Ukraine comprising $150m worth of maintenance, repair and overhaul capability for M109 self-propelled howitzers, and $180m to sustain air defences. The Pentagon said contractors involved would include BAE Systems, Allison Transmission, Daimler Truck North America, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Radionix and Systems Electronic Export. The US on Wednesday announced sales of $322m related to Hawk surface-to-air missiles and Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. Reuters are reporting that an Indian company shipped $1.4m worth of an explosive used in missile warheads, rocket motors and bombs to Russia in December 2024 despite the threat of US sanctions, according to Indian customs data seen by the news agency. One Russian company listed as receiving the compound, known as HMX or octogen, was an explosives manufacturer, which Ukraine's SBU security service has linked to Moscow's military. An SBU official said Ukraine launched a drone attack in April against one of the company's factories. The US government has identified HMX/octogen as 'critical for Russia's war effort'. The US state department did not comment to Reuters on the specific shipments but said it had repeatedly communicated to India that companies doing military-related business with Russia were at risk of sanctions. However, under Donald Trump, Russia-related sanctions work has slowed to a trickle. India's foreign ministry said in a statement: 'India has been carrying out exports of dual-use items taking into account its international obligations on non-proliferation,' adding that such exports were subject to 'holistic assessment'.
India Today
an hour ago
- Politics
- India Today
Zelenskyy restores independence of Ukrainian agencies after protests, EU criticism
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has proposed a new law to restore the independence of the country's anti-corruption agencies, just days after approving another law that weakened the autonomy of those agencies, sparking protests across Thursday, Zelenskyy said the new bill would be reviewed by parliament soon. "This draft guarantees real strengthening of Ukraine's law enforcement system, the independence of anti-corruption bodies, and reliable protection of the legal system from any Russian interference," he two top anti-graft agencies -- the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) -- welcomed the president's new proposal. They said it would bring back their full powers and ensure their freedom from political control. The agencies also said they had helped in drafting the new bill. They urged lawmakers to approve it quickly to protect ongoing corruption said, "We support the proposed law and believe it must be passed as soon as possible to ensure the independence of our work."CONTROVERSIAL LAW PROMPTED CRITICISMEarlier this week, lawmakers passed -- and Zelenskyy signed -- a law that gave the government more oversight of the anti-corruption agencies. Many feared this would let politicians interfere in sensitive investigations. Zelenskyy defended the law at first, saying it would speed up corruption cases and block Russian Zelenskyy changed his mind after facing criticism. The new bill adds new measures, like requiring law enforcement officers to take lie detector tests, and repeals the previous changes."The text is balanced," Zelenskyy said. "The most important thing is real tools, no Russian ties and the independence" of the bill also made clear that the prosecutor general and their deputies cannot interfere with or give orders to anti-corruption first bill had triggered Ukraine's biggest protests since the full-scale war with Russia began in February 2022. While the protesters didn't call for Zelenskyy to resign, they made it clear that trust in his leadership was shaken."It is important that we maintain unity," Zelenskyy said in a post after introducing the new new draft is seen as an attempt to calm tensions. However, protests are likely to continue until parliament officially passes the revised law. On Thursday evening, protesters gathered again, though in smaller numbers than CALLS IT A SERIOUS STEP BACKUkraine is working hard to join the European Union. The fight against corruption is a key condition for that goal, as well as continuing financial and military aid from Western European Union's Enlargement Commissioner, Marta Kos, had criticised the earlier law, calling it "a serious step back."advertisementTransparency International Ukraine also slammed the previous legislation, saying it damaged one of the country's most important reforms since the 2014 Revolution of the war on the ground continues. On Thursday, Russian attacks caused fresh devastation in several Ukrainian the eastern city of Kostiantynivka, Russian forces dropped four powerful glide bombs and fired artillery shells. Two women, aged 48 and 59, were killed, and 14 others were injured, according to Donetsk regional governor Vadym Kharkiv, two more glide bombs hit the city center, wounding at least 42 people. Among the injured were two babies, a 10-year-old girl, and two 17-year-olds, said Governor Oleh Syniehubov.- EndsWith inputs from Associated PressMust Watch
Mint
3 hours ago
- Politics
- Mint
Zelenskyy moves to restore independence of Ukraine anti-graft agencies after protests, EU criticism
KYIV, Ukraine — President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday submitted a new bill that would restore the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies in an effort to defuse tensions following his approval earlier this week of a controversial law that weakened their autonomy. The previous bill was seen as undermining the agencies' independence and sparked a public outcry and protests, the first major demonstrations since the war began, as well as sharp criticism from the European Union. Zelenskyy said parliament would review the new bill, which "guarantees real strengthening of Ukraine's law enforcement system, the independence of anti-corruption bodies, and reliable protection of the legal system from any Russian interference.' Ukraine's two main anti-graft agencies — the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office — quickly welcomed Zelenskyy's new proposal, saying it restores all their procedural powers and guarantees their independence. The agencies said they helped draft the new bill, and urged lawmakers to adopt it 'as soon as possible' to prevent threats to ongoing criminal cases. The bill would replace the contentious law passed by lawmakers and approved by Zelenskyy earlier this week. Critics said it stripped Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies of their independence by granting the government more oversight of their work. Zelenskyy initially argued the law was needed to speed up investigations, ensure more convictions and remove Russian meddling. After Thursday's U-turn, Zelenskyy said the new bill reverses the earlier changes and also introduced additional measures aimed at 'combating Russian influence,' including mandatory polygraph tests for law enforcement officers. 'The text is balanced," Zelenskyy said. 'The most important thing is real tools, no Russian ties and the independence' of the anti-graft agencies. The new draft underlines that the prosecutor general and his deputies cannot give orders to anti-graft agencies or interfere in their work. The controversy surrounding the initial bill has threatened to undermine public trust in Ukraine's leadership after more than three years of fighting Russia's full-scale invasion. The protests haven't called for Zelenskyy's ouster, but they are the first major anti-government demonstrations since the war started in February 2022. 'It is important that we maintain unity,' Zelenskyy said in his post. It was not immediately clear when the new bill will be voted on in the parliament, and the protests are likely to continue until the law is passed. At the protests on Thursday evening, the crowd was smaller than on previous days. The unrest has come at a difficult time in the all-out war. Russia's bigger army is accelerating its efforts to pierce Ukraine's front-line defenses and is escalating its bombardment of Ukrainian cities. Ukraine is also facing a question mark over whether the United States will provide more military aid and whether European commitments can take up the slack, with no end in sight to the war. Delegations from Russia and Ukraine met in Istanbul for a third round of talks in as many months Wednesday. But once again, the talks were brief and delivered no major breakthrough. Fighting entrenched corruption is crucial for Ukraine's aspirations to join the EU and maintain access to billions of dollars in Western aid in the war. It is also an effort that enjoys broad public support. EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos expressed concern Wednesday over the law approved earlier this week, calling it 'a serious step back.' The Ukrainian branch of Transparency International criticized parliament's decision, saying it undermines one of the most significant reforms since what Ukraine calls its Revolution of Dignity in 2014 and damages trust with international partners. On Thursday, two women, aged 48 and 59, were killed and 14 other people were injured when Russian forces dropped four powerful glide bombs on Kostiantynivka, an industrial city in eastern Ukraine, and shelled it with artillery, Donetsk regional Gov. Vadym Filashkin said. Russian planes also dropped two glide bombs on the center of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, on Thursday morning, regional Gov. Oleh Syniehubov said. At least 42 people were wounded, including two babies, a 10-year-old girl and two 17 year olds, authorities said. The southern city of Odesa, and Cherkasy in central Ukraine, were also hit overnight, authorities said. The drone and missile strikes on the cities wounded 11 people, including a 9-year-old, and damaged historic landmarks and residential buildings, officials said. Ukraine has sought to step up its own long-range drone attacks on Russia, using domestic technology and manufacturing. An overnight Ukrainian drone attack on the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi killed two women and wounded 11 other people, local authorities said Thursday. An oil depot was hit, officials said, without offering details. Follow 's coverage of the war in Ukraine at /hub/russia-ukraine This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
India.com
3 hours ago
- Politics
- India.com
Ukraine: Why A New Law Turned Zelensky From Wartime Hero To An Autocrat
Kyiv (Ukraine): What began as murmurs has now become a wave. In Kyiv and several other cities of Ukraine, ordinary citizens and war veterans have taken to the streets, not to rally against Russia, but to question their own government. Their anger is directed at a new law passed by parliament that they believe undermines the very democracy they have fought to defend. At the center of the uproar is a controversial move that grants the prosecutor general, a president's appointee, direct control over two key anti-corruption agencies such as the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO). Protesters say the law guts the independence of these watchdog bodies and tightens Volodymyr Zelenskyy's grip on power. For many Ukrainians, especially soldiers home from the front, the sense of betrayal runs deep. 'You send us to die for democracy. And then you secretly kill it,' said a veteran wrapped in gauze, standing defiantly outside the Verkhovna Rada. Discontent is no longer limited to the streets. Officials across Europe and in Washington are alarmed. Billions in financial aid from G7 countries and the European Union (EU) are now at risk. Many in Belgium have begun to question whether Ukraine still meets the standards for EU membership. Some fear that what was once a war to defend democracy could now be paving the road to its dismantling. One mother in Kyiv, whose son is still fighting in the east, said, 'Russia could not break our spirit. But maybe our own government can.' President Zelensky tried to calm the storm. In a national address, he defended the new legislation as a necessary correction. He claimed corruption cases had long been stalled, and that the anti-corruption agencies had become vulnerable to Russian infiltration. The law, he said, would allow better coordination and accountability. But critics were not convinced. Opposition lawmakers denounced the law as a power grab. They accused Zelensky of using war as an excuse to extend his stay in office without holding elections, something that has not happened since the war broke out three years ago. U.S. President Donald Trump too echoed the allegation, accusing Zelensky of hiding behind martial law to avoid facing voters. For the first time, the NABU and the SAPO issued a joint warning. They said that if the law is implemented, their independence will be destroyed. The SAPO chief, they warned, will become little more than a ceremonial figure. Once Ukraine's fiercest investigative arm, the NABU would report directly to the prosecutor general, effectively ending its autonomy. EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos added her voice to the chorus of concern. She wrote in a public post that any attack on Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies would jeopardise its path to the EU. 'Independent institutions are the heart of democracy. Undermining them is not just a step back, it is a turn off the road,' she wrote. Meanwhile, the war with Russia grinds on. But another conflict has opened up inside Ukraine's own institutions, a battle over the kind of nation that will be left standing when the war is over. The posters in the capital now speak louder than any speech: 'Not in our name.'
Al Jazeera
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Ukraine's Zelenskyy introduces bill after anticorruption protests
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has submitted a new draft bill to the country's legislature, in an effort to calm outrage over a previously passed law that critics say paves the way for corruption. The country's anticorruption agencies quickly hailed the bill's introduction on Thursday, saying it would restore their 'procedural powers and guarantees of independence'. The Ukrainian leader has contended with protests and condemnation from both within Ukraine and from its closest European allies after a separate controversial law was passed on Tuesday. That law placed the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) under the direct authority of the country's prosecutor general – a position appointed by the president. Zelenskyy initially maintained that the law was needed to respond to suspected 'Russian influence' within the agencies amid Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Critics, however, said the law would strip the bodies of their independence and could allow political interference, while failing to address any potential Kremlin-linked operatives. On Tuesday, thousands of Ukrainians defied martial law – which has been in place since the beginning of Russia's war – to take to the streets of Kyiv and other major cities to protest against the law. European officials also questioned the law, noting that addressing corruption remains a core requirement both for Ukraine's future European Union membership and in assuring aid flows to combat Russia. Amid the pressure, Zelenskyy backed away from the new law, promising to submit new legislation that would assure 'all the norms for the independence of anti-corruption institutions will be in place' and that there would be no Russian 'influence or interference'. Opposition lawmakers have also separately prepared their own legislation to revoke the law passed on Tuesday. 'They heroically solved the problems that they created just as heroically. Grand imitators,' Yaroslav Zhelezniak, from the opposition Holos party, said on Telegram, criticising Zelenskyy and his allies about-turn. Before the new draft bill's introduction, Zelenskyy spoke with the leaders of Germany and the United Kingdom on Thursday. In a statement, Zelenskyy's office said British Prime Minister Keir Starmer had 'offered to involve experts who could contribute to long-term cooperation' on the issue. In a post on X, Zelenskyy said he invited Friedrich Merz to 'join the expert review of the bill'. 'Friedrich assured me of readiness to assist,' he said. It was not immediately clear when Ukraine's legislature, the Verkhovna Rada, would vote on the new bill.
