Why the attack on NABU will have long-term consequences and how to fix the situation
Five years ago, the New Europe Center published a comprehensive study that recognised democracy as Ukraine’s main strength.
The logical conclusion of the study was that Ukraine has the potential to become an alternative center of gravity to Moscow and an attractive development model for the populations of other post-Soviet countries.
However, recent decisions regarding NABU and SAP undermine this prospect.
Read more in the article by Serhii Solodky, Director of the New Europe Center, about the possible international consequences for Ukraine of the attack on anti-corruption agencies: The risk of "Orbanisation": why losing the EU’s trust is dangerous for Ukraine.
The Russian authorities declared war on Ukraine’s democratic development immediately after the Orange Revolution, Putin relentlessly frightened Russians with the "orange threat."
The Kremlin did not hide the fact that a democratic Ukraine, which allows itself to rise up against the president, to reform, to change power through elections, poses an existential threat to Russian statehood or, more precisely, to Putin’s regime.
When the Russian elite proved unable to end Ukrainian democracy through bribery, intimidation or puppet politicians, they ultimately resorted to open military aggression.
The argument of a war of dictatorships against democratic Ukraine allowed Ukrainians to call on the democratic world for support – from Canada to Japan, from the United States to Taiwan. The defence of Ukrainian democracy mobilised the democratic world to assist Ukraine; it sparked admiration and sincere support in many corners of the globe.
At the same time, analysts at our center have repeatedly been asked by foreign colleagues: how is it possible to maintain democratic freedoms during wartime?
Of course, a country at war cannot be an ideal democracy.
Perhaps that is why foreign observers were not as demanding or critical of certain ambiguous moves by Ukraine that the opposition often highlighted.
Within Ukraine’s corridors of power, there may have been an expectation that the West would turn a blind eye to new decisions regarding key anti-corruption institutions.
However, now it will be harder for our partners to respond to accusations about winding down the fight against corruption and increasing authoritarian tendencies in the country.
The international damage of recent decisions may be greater than it appears.
Ukraine’s opponents in Washington may exploit these recent trends, once again claiming that a corrupt Ukraine is stealing all the aid.
What response is there to skeptical Germans and French who doubted the need for rapid EU enlargement: "Where are the guarantees that we won’t get a new Hungary in the EU?"
The possibility of Ukraine’s "Orbanisation" is arguably the main concern among European democratic politicians.
It is now important to solve this problem as quickly as it arose.
And Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s promise to strengthen the independence of anti-corruption agencies shows that the voice of citizens still matters.