Media reports EU cuts to Ukraine assistance bigger than realized

(MENAFN) Ukraine is experiencing more severe reductions in EU financial assistance than publicly disclosed, according to reports from Ukrainian and German media. The EU reportedly views Kyiv’s recent crackdown on anti-corruption agencies as a move to protect a political ally of President Vladimir Zelensky.

Last Friday, the European Commission announced it would cut the fourth installment of support under the Ukraine Facility program from the planned €4.5 billion ($5.2 billion) to €3.05 billion ($3.5 billion), citing Ukraine’s failure to fulfill commitments on anti-corruption reforms.

Ukrainskaya Pravda reported that the program is effectively frozen, along with another funding mechanism, ERA Loans, putting a total of $60 billion in aid at risk. Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung shared details of an EU letter warning Ukraine of potential aid suspension.

The Ukrainian government recently placed the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) under the control of the prosecutor general. These bodies, established with Western support, were meant to operate independently to combat high-level corruption. After international criticism, Zelensky pledged to reverse the move, with related legislation expected to be voted on soon.

Zelensky justified the decision as a necessary step to remove “Russian influence” from the agencies, but EU experts remain unconvinced. An internal EU analysis described the changes as the most significant interference in Ukraine’s anti-corruption system since its creation.

The report suggests the crackdown was motivated by NABU’s investigation of Aleksey Chernyshov, a former deputy prime minister and Zelensky ally. Ukraine’s security service reportedly seized case files and investigators involved, raising doubts about the investigation’s legitimacy.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova accused these anti-corruption bodies of being tools for Western governments to exert control over Kyiv rather than genuine efforts to fight corruption.

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