“The Internal Enemy” is the fitting title of a Helsinki Commission staff report on corruption in Ukraine. Recently, I joined Oksana Shulyar, deputy chief of mission, Embassy of Ukraine to the United States, Anders Aslund of the Atlantic Council and Brian Dooley of Human Rights First as a speaker at a Helsinki Commission briefing on this critically important topic (https://www.csce.gov/international-impact/events/ukraines-fight-against-corruption).
For this month’s column, I share an abbreviated version of my remarks, touching upon corruption’s historical legacy, its corrosive impact, recent developments and the U.S. response.
Ukraine was in many respects starting from scratch in 1991 when it regained its independence. The Soviet legacy was incredibly devastating – the deaths of many millions in the genocidal Holodomor and World War II, the attempts to eradicate Ukraine’s national identity, including through the destruction of the intelligentsia and Russification. Ukraine also suffered from international isolation. It was, for all practical purposes, a colony of Moscow. It had no experience with market economies or democratic practices, having been warped by 70 years of Soviet Communist rule (except pre-War Western Ukraine). And, lest we forget, corruption was far from unknown in the USSR. These realities compounded the difficulty of the transition.
So, newly independent Ukraine faced huge challenges – not only did it have to develop state institutions, but also build a nation and a market economy. In its preoccupation with state- and nation-building, Ukraine did not devote sufficient attention to the need for economic reform, and this helped create the conditions for the kind of free-for-all corruption and the rise of the oligarchs that the report discusses.
One cannot overstate the corrosive effect of corruption on independent Ukraine’s political system, the economy, society and national security, making it more vulnerable to Russia. Corruption’s effect has ranged from weakening the moral fabric of society to discouraging badly needed foreign investment. The lack of transparency, accountability and rule of law has slowed its integration into the trans-Atlantic community. Despite the positive reforms in recent years, corruption remains Ukraine’s greatest internal enemy.
Ukraine has done more on reforms in the last nearly four years than in the previous 22, including on anti-corruption. On the positive side, we have seen the establishment of an anti-corruption architecture, including, notably, NABU – the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine. There have been important legislative developments and key reform progress in the energy, banking, public procurement, privatization, business, health care and police/law enforcement sectors, and even in the justice sector. As substantial as the progress is, there is much more that needs to be done.
This battle against corruption remains a dynamic process, although not always in a positive direction. Even within the last month we’ve seen movement in terms of reform legislation that could remove opportunities for corruption and other steps to hold individuals and institutions accountable. On the other hand, we have seen moves that, at a minimum, raise questions about the authorities’ commitment to combat corruption, and attempts to roll back the achievements – pushback from the vested interests. It’s a mixed picture. There are also valid concerns that it will get tougher to implement anti-corruption reforms as the 2019 elections approach.
What are some of the things that Ukraine needs to more successfully combat the scourge of corruption?
• Ukraine needs political leadership genuinely committed to combating corruption: the political class has fallen dramatically short and has often been part of the problem and not part of the solution. It needs to display political will. It needs to set a good example. Even today, we see political leadership that sometimes does the right thing but at other times falls back to old, bad habits. Oligarchs still wield too much political influence. Among other things, civil society – the main impetus behind reforms – needs to be treated as an ally and a partner, and not as an adversary.
• Ukraine needs greater accountability of institutions and individuals. There has to be more progress legislatively, and, crucially, that legislation must be implemented – something that has often been problematic. Genuinely independent institutions are critical, like NABU and an anti-corruption court. More bad actors, including senior officials, need to be brought to justice.
• Corruption isn’t just a high-level phenomenon, it pervades society. A values-based approach – the teaching of ethics and moral principles – is needed. Partners in this could be the educational system; religious institutions (according to polls, the Church is among the most respected institutions in Ukraine); political, cultural, intellectual, sports figures, as well as NGOs and the media.
The U.S. has been a strong supporter of Ukraine’s independence and democratic aspirations – not only various administrations, but also Congress, on a bipartisan basis – even prior to the re-establishment of Ukraine’s independence.
Primarily through the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. has provided concrete anti-corruption assistance initiatives and programs that have intensified in the post-Maidan era. Our work here has helped to move the ball forward. We need to maintain and even bolster our assistance both to Ukrainian governmental institutions engaged in anti-corruption reform and to civil society, especially NGOs with expertise and understanding of the complicated issues surrounding Ukraine’s anti-corruption fight. And we need to stand with them and defend them when the authorities are taking unfair measures against them. Also, we need to keep working with our international partners – the European Union, Canada, the International Monetary Fund and other international financial institutions, and international organizations such as NATO and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe – in engaging with Ukrainians on anti-corruption reforms.
U.S. support, encouragement and, when necessary, political pressure, including calling out the Ukrainian authorities, also has its place – and not only by the administration and Congress, but also by Ukraine’s many friends in the U.S., including the Ukrainian American community and numerous American NGOs involved with Ukraine. The thoughtful and judicious use of various kinds of leverage, including conditionality of assistance and loan guarantees, reallocation of existing assistance where it can be the most effective, or even selective punitive actions against corrupt officials, can also be utilized. Sometimes a bit of tough love is necessary when there is backsliding or stalling.
At the same time that we welcome and encourage the genuine progress that has occurred, we should not underestimate the very real challenges in combating corruption. First, we must keep in mind that Ukraine is in a war where Russia has flagrantly violated the rules-based-international order and continues to do whatever it can get away with to destabilize Ukraine. U.S. policymakers understand this and the need to maintain support for Ukraine in its ongoing struggle to counter Russian aggression. Second, there is the recognition that reforms are tough, even in the best of circumstances and even in countries that don’t face the challenges that Ukraine confronts. And third, there is acknowledgement among Ukraine’s supporters of the real progress that has taken place.
For these reasons, I believe that Ukraine will continue to have substantial U.S. support and I don’t fear the prospect of the kind of “Ukraine fatigue” that we’ve occasionally witnessed in the past. But, while the U.S. will not abandon Ukraine, the levels and enthusiasm of support do matter. We should continue to have a balanced approach – to be politically and financially supportive, as well as encourage, cajole and pressure when necessary. We need to be patient, yet vigilant.
It is essential that we keep faith with the people of Ukraine and encourage reformers in government, the Rada and civil society in their anti-corruption fight. A successful, democratic, rule-of-law Ukraine that brings the country closer to the Euro-Atlantic community is not only good ipso facto, but ultimately the best antidote to Vladimir Putin’s predations and his continuing attempts to destabilize Ukraine and, indeed, the entire West.