Zelensky signs law limiting independence of anti-corruption agencies

2025-07-23 09:03:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a law restricting the independence of two main anti-corruption agencies: the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO).

Zelensky made the decision despite protests and criticism from Ukraine's European allies.

Hundreds of citizens protested on July 22 in central Kiev, urging the president to reject the law.

They said the law had been passed in haste and that it paved the way for government interference in corruption investigations.

There were also protests in Dnipro and other cities.

The law was approved by 263 deputies in the Ukrainian Parliament, which has a total of 450.

Otherwise, NABU investigates corruption cases in state institutions, while SAPO prosecutes other corruption cases.

Since its establishment in 2015, NABU has highlighted serious corruption cases involving high-ranking officials.

In his daily video address, Zelensky said that Ukraine's anti-corruption infrastructure must be cleansed of Russian influence, adding that NABU and SAPO will continue their work.

"It is also important that the prosecutor general is committed to ensuring real accountability for those who break the law. This is what Ukraine really needs," he said.

The European Union described the Ukrainian Parliament's decision to approve the bill as a "serious step backwards."

“The destruction of key guarantees that protected NABU’s independence is a serious step backwards,” EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos wrote in X.

"We will continue to work with Ukraine on necessary reforms in the rule of law and progress on the path towards the EU," she added.

The law, proposed by Zelensky's ruling party, makes the prosecutor general the de facto head of SAPO, stripping the current head of the anti-corruption agency of his powers.

The law also enables the prosecutor general to unilaterally close cases involving high-ranking officials and gives him the right to transfer NABU investigations to other agencies.

"With this decision, the Parliament not only deprives society of one of the greatest achievements since the Revolution of Dignity - independent anti-corruption institutions - but also undermines the trust of Ukraine's international partners," said a reaction from the organization Transparency International Ukraine, after the adoption of the law.

Transparency International said that if Zelensky does not veto the law, he "will share responsibility with Parliament for dismantling Ukraine's anti-corruption infrastructure."/ REL