Latest news with #GermanMarshallFund
Boston Globe
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Zelensky's government takes aim at corruption fighters
On Monday, even as the country came under yet another large-scale bombardment in its grueling war with Russia, Ukrainian security agencies directed dozens of raids on Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Special Anticorruption Prosecutor, saying that Russian intelligence had infiltrated the organizations. Advertisement And on Tuesday, the Ukrainian parliament, which Zelensky's party controls, passed a law that — if signed by the president — would give Ukraine's prosecutor general, who was appointed by Zelensky, new powers over investigations by the two agencies. On Tuesday evening, thousands of people took to the streets outside the president's offices in Kyiv, the capital, to protest the moves — the largest antigovernment protests in years. Activists and analysts say these developments are part of a broader crackdown on independent media, government oversight agencies, and other voices critical of Zelensky's administration. And they warn that the efforts threaten to dismantle years of hard-won democratic reforms. 'This prosecution of Mr. Shabunin is the opening salvo,' declared Josh Rudolph, who leads the German Marshall Fund's corruption team, characterizing it as a 'brazen campaign to undermine the entire ecosystem constructed to root out corruption.' Advertisement The Zelensky government did not respond to written questions but has broadly dismissed criticism that it has tried to silence dissent. The director of the anticorruption bureau, Semen Kryvonos, and the head of the special prosecutor's office, Oleksandr Klymenko, criticized the legislation giving the prosecutor general new powers over the agencies shortly after parliament passed it. Speaking at a news conference in Kyiv, Kryvonos said that the imperative 'to fight high-level corruption' was 'destroyed by representatives in parliament.' He added, 'The president of Ukraine still has to sign this law, and we ask that he does not sign it.' In the raids on the two agencies, the Ukrainian authorities detained one employee working with the anticorruption bureau, saying he was working against state interests. The bureau said in a statement that it had worked closely with Ukrainian security services about concerns related to the employee for years but had never been provided with any evidence against him. Meanwhile, the bureau has been investigating possible abuses by people in the Zelensky administration, including Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, who was charged with corruption on June 23. The Group of 7, which represents the world's major industrialized nations, issued a statement Monday night expressing 'serious concerns' about the Ukrainian government's investigation into the bureau and said it would 'discuss these developments with government leaders.' The two agencies were created more than a decade ago specifically to provide an independent check on government abuse, bypassing traditional law enforcement, which was seen as riddled with corruption. They were formed with the assistance of the FBI, supported by the European Union, and nurtured by successive US administrations. Advertisement But the agencies drew criticism from President Trump's supporters in his first administration for what they saw as Ukrainian meddling in the 2016 presidential election to favor Hillary Clinton. The agency had investigated off-the-books payments in Ukraine to Trump's campaign chair in the 2016 race, Paul Manafort, leading to Manafort's resignation. As for the prosecution of Shabunin, 59 nongovernmental organizations signed an open letter to Zelensky late last week, saying it 'bears signs of political motivation, abuse of rights,' and either 'gross incompetence' or 'a deliberate attack to pressure' Shabunin. 'Ukraine's allies have been saying for three years that the country is bravely fighting for the free world — where democracies obey the rule of law and do not target activists for persecution,' said Rudolph of the German Marshall Fund. 'If they remain silent in this precarious moment, their words of support for Ukrainian freedom will prove shamefully hollow.' But Europe has largely chosen silence over censure, prioritizing unity in the fight against Russia. Daria Kaleniuk, executive director of the Kyiv-based Anti-Corruption Action Center, a nongovernmental group of which Shabunin was a cofounder, said the Zelensky administration had taken this silence as a 'green light' to target critics. Dismissing the charges against Shabunin as absurd, Kaleniuk said, 'This is the moment when Zelensky and his administration has very clearly crossed the red line, a line that is unacceptable to Ukrainian society.' Leading Ukrainian media outlets also published scathing editorials criticizing Shabunin's prosecution. Zelensky's critics in Ukraine acknowledge a concern the government has raised — that Moscow is working hard to fuel corruption narratives as part of its efforts to undermine Western support. Ukraine relies heavily on weapons and financial support from its allies, and it is seeking billions of dollars more each year to expand production by its own arms industry. Advertisement Shabunin himself noted this tension. 'Whatever it will be with me, we as Ukraine should get weapons from the West,' he said. 'We can, as a society, deal with any kind of Ukrainian politician.' Rudolph said the campaign against independent agencies and activists 'is doing Putin's work for him,' referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. 'I doubt that is the intent, but it makes it all the more ironic to use Russian influence as the pretext,' he said. This article originally appeared in
CNBC
09-07-2025
- Business
- CNBC
European companies among biggest manufacturers of industrial goods in U.S.: GMF
Peter Chase, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund, discusses the state of EU-U.S. trade negotiations.
The Hill
24-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Trump Heads To NATO As FRAGILE Ceasefire HOLDS
President Trump unleashed on the Israelis and the Iranians on Tuesday, expressing his displeasure at continued fighting between the two adversaries after he announced the parameters of a ceasefire the day before. 'We basically — we have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don't know what the f‑‑‑ they're doing,' Trump told reporters at the White House before taking off for a trip to The Hague for the NATO Summit. The Hill's Drew Petrimoulx discusses Trump's trip to NATO and the possibility of the ceasefire failing with Ambassador Brent Hardt, a Resident Senior Fellow at the German Marshall Fund.
Mint
20-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
Erdogan vows to boost Turkeys missile production as Israel-Iran war escalates
ANKARA, Turkey — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he plans to strengthen the country's deterrence capabilities so that no country would dare attack it. Erdogan announced plans this week to step up Turkey's production of medium- and long-range missiles, as the war between Israel and Iran escalates. Erdogan discussed the Iran-Israel war with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in a telephone call on Friday. He told Merz that the Iranian nuclear issue can only be resolved through negotiations, according to Erdogan's office. Despite Turkey's tense relations with Israel, analysts and officials don't see an immediate threat of the conflict spreading into NATO-member Turkey. Still, some see the move by Erdogan as a sign that the Israel-Iran war could trigger a new arms race in the region, with countries not directly involved in the fray ramping up their military efforts to preempt future conflicts. The Israeli army on Friday declined to comment on Turkey's plans to ramp up missile production, but Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded to Erdogan's criticisms of Israel over its attack on Iran in an X post on Wednesday. He accused Erdogan of having 'imperialist ambitions' and of having 'set a record in suppressing the freedoms and rights of his citizens, as well as his country's opposition.' Ahmet Kasim Han, a professor of international relations at Istanbul's Beykoz University, said that Turkey was reacting to what he described as an unraveling world order. 'The Turkish government is drifting toward what is the name of the game in the Middle East right now: an escalation of an arms race,' he said, adding that Israel and the U.S. have set a high standard in aerial warfare, creating a technological gap that Turkey and others are eager to close. Erdogan said following a Cabinet meeting on Monday that 'we are making production plans to bring our medium- and long-range missile stockpiles to a level that ensures deterrence, in light of recent developments." 'God willing, in the not-too-distant future, we will reach a defense capacity that is so strong that no one will even dare to act tough toward us," Erdogan said. In an separate address days later, he highlighted Turkey's progress in its domestically developed defense industry, that includes drones, fighter jets, armored vehicles and navy vessels, but stressed that continued effort was needed to ensure full deterrence. 'Although Turkey has a very large army — the second largest in NATO — its air power, its air defense, is relatively weaker,' said Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, a Turkey analyst at the German Marshall Fund think tank. The ongoing conflict has reinforced the importance of air superiority, including missiles and missile defense systems, prompting 'countries in the region, including Turkey to strengthen its air power,' he said. Since the start of the conflict, Erdogan has been scrambling to end the hostilities. He has held a flurry of phone calls with leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, offering to act as a 'facilitator' for the resumption of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program. There are deep concerns in Turkey that a prolonged conflict will cause energy disruptions and lead to refugee movement from Iran, with which it shares a 560 kilometer-long border. Turkey relies heavily on energy imports, including from Iran, and rising oil prices due to the conflict could aggravate inflation and further strain its troubled economy. It has strongly criticized Israel's actions, saying Iran has the legitimate right to defend itself against Israel's attacks, which came as nuclear negotiations were ongoing. Once close allies, Turkey and Israel have grown deeply estranged, especially after the start of the war in Gaza in 2023, with Erdogan becoming one of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's fiercest critics. Relations further deteriorated following the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government as Israel grew increasingly wary of expanding Turkish influence in Syria. Earlier this year, Turkey and Israel established a 'de-escalation mechanism' aimed at preventing conflict between their troops in Syria. The move came after Syria's Foreign Ministry said that Israeli jets had struck a Syrian air base that Turkey reportedly hoped to use. Erdogan's nationalist ally, Devlet Bahceli, suggested that Turkey was a potential target for Israel, accusing the country of strategically 'encircling' Turkey with its military actions. He didn't elaborate. However, analysts say such statements were for 'domestic consumption' to garner support amid growing anti-Israel sentiment in Turkey. 'I don't think that Israel has any interest in attacking Turkey, or Turkey has any interest in a conflict with Israel,' Han said. Ibrahim Hazboun contributed from Jerusalem. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Indian Express
20-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Erdogan vows to boost Turkiye's missile production as Israel-Iran war escalates
As the war between Israel and Iran escalates, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said he plans to strengthen the country's deterrence capabilities so that no country would dare attack it. Erdogan announced plans this week to step up Turkiye's production of medium- and long-range missiles. Erdogan discussed the Iran-Israel war with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in a telephone call on Friday. He told Merz that the Iranian nuclear issue can only be resolved through negotiations, according to Erdogan's office. Despite Turkiye's tense relations with Israel, analysts and officials don't see an immediate threat of the conflict spreading into NATO-member Turkiye. Still, some see the move by Erdogan as a sign that the Israel-Iran war could trigger a new arms race in the region, with countries not directly involved in the fray ramping up their military efforts to preempt future conflicts. Ahmet Kasim Han, a professor of international relations at Istanbul's Beykoz University, said that Turkiye was reacting to what he described as an unravelling world order. 'The Turkish government is drifting toward what is the name of the game in the Middle East right now: an escalation of an arms race,' he said. Israel and the US have set a high standard in aerial warfare, creating a technological gap that Turkiye and others are eager to close, Han said. Erdogan said following a Cabinet meeting on Monday that 'we are making production plans to bring our medium- and long-range missile stockpiles to a level that ensures deterrence, in light of recent developments.' 'God willing, in the not-too-distant future, we will reach a defense capacity that is so strong that no one will even dare to act tough toward us,' Erdogan said. In an separate address days later, the Turkish leader highlighted Turkey's progress in its domestically developed defence industry, that includes drones, fighter jets, armored vehicles and navy vessels, but stressed that continued effort was needed to ensure full deterrence. 'Although Turkiye has a very large army — the second largest in NATO — its air power, its air defense is relatively weaker,' said Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, a Turkey analyst at the German Marshall Fund think tank. The ongoing conflict has reinforced the importance of air superiority, including missiles and missile defense systems, prompting 'countries in the region, including Turkiye to strengthen its air power,' he said. Since the start of the conflict, Erdogan has been scrambling to end the hostilities. He has held a flurry of phone calls with leaders, including US President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, offering to act as a 'facilitator' for the resumption of negotiations on Iran's nuclear program. There are deep concerns in Turkey that a prolonged conflict will cause energy disruptions and lead to refugee movement from Iran, with which it shares a 560 kilometer-long (348 mile) border. Turkiye relies heavily on energy imports, including from Iran, and rising oil prices due to the conflict could aggravate inflation and further strain its troubled economy. Turkiye has strongly criticised Israel's actions, saying Iran has the legitimate right to defend itself against Israel's attacks, which came as nuclear negotiations were ongoing. Once close allies, Turkey and Israel have grown deeply estranged, especially after the start of the war in Gaza in 2023, with Erdogan becoming one of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's fiercest critics. Relations further deteriorated following the fall of Syrian President Bashar Assad's government, as Israel grew increasingly wary of expanding Turkish influence in Syria. Earlier this year, Turkiye and Israel however, established a 'de-escalation mechanism' aimed at preventing conflict between their troops in Syria. The move came after Syria's Foreign Ministry said that Israeli jets had struck a Syrian air base that Turkey reportedly hoped to use. Israel hasn't commented on Turkey's announcement that it plans to ramp up missile production, but Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar responded to Erdogan's criticisms of Israel over its attack on Iran in an X post on Wednesday. He accused Erdogan of having 'imperialist ambitions' and of having 'set a record in suppressing the freedoms and rights of his citizens, as well as his country's opposition.' Erdogan's nationalist ally, Devlet Bahceli, suggested that Turkey was a potential target for Israel, accusing the country of strategically 'encircling' Turkey with its military actions. He didn't elaborate. Analysts say, however, that such statements were for 'domestic consumption' to garner support amid growing anti-Israel sentiment in Turkey. 'I don't think that Israel has any interest in attacking Turkiye, or Turkiye has any interest in a conflict with Israel,' Han said.
