Latest news with #Volodymyr Zelenskiy
Bloomberg
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Zelenskiy Seeks Swift Legislation to Quell Furor Over Corruption
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called for a new law to be drafted swiftly in an effort to quell public outrage over his move this week to curb the independence of the nation's anti-graft agencies. 'It is important that we respect the position of all Ukrainians and are grateful to everyone who stands with Ukraine,' Zelenskiy said in a statement on Thursday, announcing the new bill.
Reuters
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
EU welcomes Ukraine's pledge to protect anti-corruption agencies
BRUSSELS, July 24 (Reuters) - The European Union welcomed Ukraine's pledge to protect the independence of its anti-corruption agencies and said on Thursday that a commitment to fight corruption is an important precondition both for EU financial aid as well as for potential EU membership. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed on Wednesday to retain the independence of anti-corruption agencies, bowing to pressure from the first wartime street protests since Russia invaded the country in February 2022 and rare rebukes from European allies. "We welcome the fact that the Ukrainian government is taking action, and we work with them to make sure that our concerns, which have been clearly explained yesterday and the day before yesterday, are indeed taken into account," an EU spokesperson told reporters in response to questions. Zelenskiy said he would submit a new bill to ensure the rule of law and retain the independence of the anti-corruption agencies. The EU spokesperson said that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had spoken to Zelenskiy about the issue but provided no further detail. "We work with them to make sure that these concerns regarding the fight against corruption, which is an extremely important priority for us and for Ukraine, are indeed correctly addressed," the spokesperson said. "We provide significant financial support to Ukraine and this is conditional to progress and transparency, judicial reform and democratic governance," an EU spokesperson said. He added that in light of potential EU accession, Ukraine needs to have a strong capacity to combat corruption and to have the institutions to do so, and that these institutions must be independent.
Reuters
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Kremlin says it's hard to see how Putin and Zelenskiy could meet by end of August, RIA reports
MOSCOW, July 24 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Thursday that it was hard to see how Russian President Vladimir Putin could meet his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy before the end of August, Russian state news agency RIA reported. A Ukrainian delegate said after the latest brief round of peace talks between the two countries on Wednesday that Kyiv had proposed a Putin-Zelenskiy meeting in August because that would fall within the 50-day deadline that U.S. President Donald Trump had set last week for a deal. Trump has threatened new sanctions on Russia and buyers of its exports unless an agreement is reached by early September.
Reuters
a day ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Russia, Ukraine discuss more POW swaps; no deal on ceasefire or leaders' meeting
ISTANBUL, July 23 (Reuters) - Russia and Ukraine discussed further prisoner swaps on Wednesday at a brief session of peace talks in Istanbul, but the sides remained far apart on ceasefire terms and a possible meeting of their leaders. "We have progress on the humanitarian track, with no progress on a cessation of hostilities," Ukraine's chief delegate Rustem Umerov said after talks that lasted just 40 minutes. He said Ukraine had proposed a meeting before the end of August between Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. He added: "By agreeing to this proposal, Russia can clearly demonstrate its constructive approach." Russia's chief delegate Vladimir Medinsky said the point of a leaders' meeting should be to sign an agreement, not to "discuss everything from scratch". He renewed Moscow's call for a series of short ceasefires of 24-48 hours to enable the retrieval of bodies. Ukraine says it wants an immediate and much longer ceasefire. The talks took place just over a week after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened heavy new sanctions on Russia and countries that buy its exports unless a peace deal was reached within 50 days. There was no sign of any progress towards that goal, although both sides said there was discussion of further humanitarian exchanges following a series of prisoner swaps, the latest of which took place on Wednesday. Medinsky said the negotiators agreed to exchange at least 1,200 more prisoners of war from each side, and Russia had offered to hand over another 3,000 Ukrainian bodies. He said Moscow was working through a list of 339 names of Ukrainian children that Kyiv accuses it of abducting. Russia denies that charge and says it has offered protection to children separated from their parents during the war. "Some of the children have already been returned back to Ukraine. Work is under way on the rest. If their legal parents, close relatives, representatives are found, these children will immediately return home," Medinsky said. Umerov said Kyiv was expecting "further progress" on POWs, adding: "We continue to insist on the release of civilians, including children." Ukrainian authorities say at least 19,000 children have been forcibly deported. Before the talks, the Kremlin had played down expectations, describing the two sides' positions as diametrically opposed and saying no one should expect miracles. At 40 minutes, the meeting was even shorter than the two sides' previous encounters on May 16 and June 2, which lasted a combined total of under three hours. Oleksandr Bevz, a member of the Ukrainian delegation, said Kyiv had proposed a Putin-Zelenskiy meeting in August because that would fall within the deadline set by Trump for a deal. Putin turned down a previous challenge from Zelenskiy to meet in person and has said he does not see him as a legitimate leader because Ukraine, which is under martial law, did not hold new elections when Zelenskiy's five-year mandate expired last year. Trump has patched up relations with Zelenskiy after a public row with him at the White House in February, and has lately expressed growing frustration with Putin. Three sources close to the Kremlin told Reuters last week that Putin, unfazed by Trump's ultimatum, would keep fighting in Ukraine until the West engaged on his terms for peace, and that his territorial demands may widen as Russian forces advance.
Reuters
a day ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Zelenskiy vows to protect Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies, bows to protests
KYIV, July 23 (Reuters) - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed on Wednesday to retain the independence of anti-corruption agencies, bowing to pressure from the first wartime street protests and rare rebukes from European allies. For a second day in a row, thousands of people across the country - from Kharkiv in the northeast to the capital Kyiv to Lviv in the west - took to the streets demanding reversal of the law curbing the independence of anti-graft agencies. In his evening address to the nation on Wednesday, Zelenskiy said he would submit a new bill to ensure the rule of law and retain the independence of the anti-corruption agencies. "Of course, everyone has heard what people are saying these days... on social media, to each other, on the streets. It's not falling on deaf ears," Zelenskiy said. Thousands of people turned up for a second day of protests in central Kyiv, close to Zelenskiy's office. In the first such demonstrations of the war, the youth, activists, and war veterans chanted 'Shame' and 'Veto the Law'. "It's like a knife in the back, to be honest," Maryna Mykhalchuk, 26, who has friends killed in the war and plans to join the army soon, told Reuters. Opposition lawmakers and European officials also called for reversal of the law, which Zelenskiy signed overnight. The law gives the Prosecutor General appointed by Zelenskiy more power over two investigative anti-corruption agencies. It was rushed through parliament on Tuesday, a day after the security services arrested two anti-corruption officials for suspected Russian ties. In a joint statement, both agencies - the anti-corruption bureau NABU and the specialised prosecutors SAPO - said they wanted their independence restored through legislation. Parliament is expected to hold an emergency session next week to consider the new draft bill from Zelenskiy's office, several lawmakers said. The law prompted some of Ukraine's European allies to deliver their strongest criticism of Zelenskiy's government since Russia's invasion in February 2022. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen expressed her strong concern to Zelenskiy and asked for an explanation, said the spokesman. The law's critics say the government appears to be trying to rein in anti-corruption agencies to protect officials. After decades of endemic corruption in Ukraine, cleaning up its government has been held up as the key condition for the country to join the EU, tap billions of dollars in foreign aid, and integrate more broadly with the West. The issue risks antagonising Kyiv's most loyal allies at a time when it is trying to smooth over the relationship with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who has frequently criticised Zelenskiy. "Ukraine's anti-corruption institutions are vital to its reform path. Restricting them would be a significant setback," Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said in a post on X. Benjamin Haddad, France's European Affairs minister, said it was not too late to reverse the decision. Ukrainian political analysts said the legislation risked undermining society's trust in Zelenskiy during a critical stage of the war against Russia. Fierce fighting rages along more than 1,000 kilometres (621 miles) of the frontline. Russian troops continue their grinding advance in the east and have stepped up near daily attacks on Ukrainian cities with hundreds of drones. Hundreds of protesters, some clad in military uniforms, in the city of Zaporizhzhia, close to the frontline in the southeast, demanded overturning the law with chants of "Ukraine is not Russia." Similar rallies took place in other major cities across the country. The public's European aspirations are vital to sustaining the war effort, said Valerii Pekar, a Kyiv-based analyst: "Only democracy and the European choice give us a chance to win," he posted on Facebook.
