'Waschuk also said it would take coordinated action by Ukraine and the West to cut the tycoons down to size, in part because the magnates have integrated themselves into the Western financial system.
He cited as an example the Western-backed nationalization of Kolomoyskiy’s PrivatBank to prevent its bankruptcy and the triggering of an economic crisis in Ukraine.
“It would actually require a pincer movement between Western governments and Ukrainian authorities to put the squeeze on these people,” Waschuk said.
“The West has to show it has some political skin in the game.” ''When Ukraine’s Constitutional Court dismantled much of the nation’s anti-corruption legislation in October 2020, dealing a blow to Kyiv’s reform agenda and its reputation abroad, many observers discerned what they believe was the influence of powerful local magnates.
By declaring it unconstitutional to force political candidates and officials to declare their assets and to penalize them for lying about their wealth, the nation’s top court blew the door wide open for wealthy businesspeople to buy the loyalty of lawmakers, cabinet members, and judges, critics of the ruling said.
It represented just the latest setback for reformers battling vested interests in an attempt to build a society based more firmly on the rule of law and put Ukraine on a clearer path toward European integration.
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The tycoons “still have a stranglehold on the country. Their power over the judiciary and parliament is just far too great,” said Morgan Williams, the president of the U.S.-Ukraine Business Council, a Washington-based association that represents the interests of foreign businesses operating in the country. Williams refers to the tycoons as “monopolists” on account of their industry dominance.
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Critics like Williams contend that the tycoons’ dominance over key industries and officials has hampered political reform, including what they believe are crucial changes to the judiciary and law enforcement, and has stifled foreign investment and competition.
Ukraine has underperformed average global economic growth since achieving independence and is among Europe’s poorest countries, despite possessing significant natural resources, including natural gas and iron ore, rich agricultural land, and a highly educated population.
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That path -- which advocates say promises to bring benefits and lift the country out of poverty in exchange for tough reforms -- has at times been opposed by the nation’s elite, observers say.
“Many of the oligarchs are very happy with the status quo and wouldn’t want to see changes that may require them to adapt. But it is not good for the economy and not good for the people of Ukraine,” Andy Hunder, the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Kyiv, told RFE/RL.
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Hunder said that some reform-minded officials have been driven from office following attacks by media outlets controlled by tycoons. He said that most media assets are believed to be loss-making, raising suspicions that they are more about winning the hearts and minds of the electorate rather than turning a profit.
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Serhiy Verlanov, the former head of Ukraine’s state tax service who was fired in April 2020, complained of “relentless attacks” from tycoon-controlled media.
The tycoons’ “near-complete control of the Ukrainian media has made it possible to marginalize and discredit democratic forces,” he wrote in a November 2020 post on the website of the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based think tank. “Their pervasive influence throughout the civil service, law enforcement, business, and especially the judiciary has allowed them to sabotage, block, stifle, and ultimately reverse reform after reform.”
“As long as we continue to play by the rules of the oligarchic system, Ukraine will remain doomed to go round in circles,” Verlanov wrote.
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Waschuk also said it would take coordinated action by Ukraine and the West to cut the tycoons down to size, in part because the magnates have integrated themselves into the Western financial system.
He cited as an example the Western-backed nationalization of Kolomoyskiy’s PrivatBank to prevent its bankruptcy and the triggering of an economic crisis in Ukraine.
“It would actually require a pincer movement between Western governments and Ukrainian authorities to put the squeeze on these people,” Waschuk said.
“The West has to show it has some political skin in the game.”
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Thirty Years After Independence From Moscow, Ukraine Struggles To Throw Off Oligarch Yoke, August 21, 2021
Context‘Crimea is Ukraine’: Zelenskyy opens inaugural Crimea summit, August 23, 2021
'..global corruption as being the root cause of many of the world's big problems.'(Ukraine) - '..to root out rampant corruption..''..it is time for Ukraine to tackle corruption and weak institutions .. corrupt judges lead to "corrupt independent institutions." '(Ethics) - '..fighting corruption, defending against authoritarianism, and advancing human rights .. strengthening .. our middle class. .. It is past time to end the forever wars .. zero emissions by 2050 .. liberty.' - Biden(GIN)(Alarming global corruption) - Netflix's 'Seapiracy': The Documentary Exposing The Fishing industry's Corruption'The EU Commission has so far not been serious about protecting the rule of law in Europe.' - German Green MEP Daniel Freund'A critical examination of U.S. policy misfires in dealing with Russia and its intentions and capabilities over the past several decades is long overdue..'