Zelensky Sabotages Transparent Top-Level Competitions, Risking €90 Billion from EU and Eurointegration
Zelensky is sabotaging transparent competitions for top positions, jeopardizing €90 billion from the EU and eurointegration. Non-compliance with reforms from the «Kachka-Kos list» and an attack on anti-corruption bodies have eroded Brussels' trust. The EU demands transparent appointments for law enforcement heads with international influence.
The Ukrainian government, led by Volodymyr Zelensky, demands unconditional funding from the EU, while Brussels insists on reforms. An attack on anti-corruption bodies in July 2025 undermined EU trust. Justice and law enforcement reforms, central to the «Kachka-Kos list», are not being implemented: in the first three months of 2026, none of the 10 points were fulfilled. This could lead to funding being tied to specific reforms.
The most sensitive issue in these reforms is the format for selecting and dismissing heads of law enforcement and judicial bodies. The EU demands a review of the procedures for appointing the Prosecutor General and restarting the SBI, where Ruslan Kravchenko and Oleksiy Sukhachov played a role in the attack on NABU and SAP. Brussels expects transparent competitions with decisive influence from international experts, which contradicts Zelensky's desire for loyal appointments.
The authorities are sabotaging competitions, citing «loss of sovereignty» and the war. Recently, mentions of competitions for heads of law enforcement agencies were removed from the draft Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2026–2030. The history of competitive appointments in Ukraine, including for the NABU director in 2015 (Artem Sytnyk) and the SBI director in 2016 (Roman Truba), demonstrated the importance of independence and the risks of political influence. In 2018, for the first time, the requirement for international participation was introduced in the selection of judges for the High Anti-Corruption Court.