海角大神

Nearly two weeks after Russia鈥檚 military invaded Ukraine, it is struggling to take and hold any major city. Its soldiers have suffered high casualties while the army鈥檚 supply logistics appear weak. It has resorted to indiscriminate bombing of civilians and may rely on Syrian fighters for door-to-door urban combat. Although Russia鈥檚 massive forces may eventually claim victory, some experts point to a possible cause for this faulty performance: the country鈥檚 culture of corruption.

鈥淚f the leadership is聽corrupt, then it is no wonder that the Russian army is at war with its capabilities,鈥� J膩nis S膩rts, director of the NATO Strategic Communications Center of Excellence, told Latvian Television. 鈥淚 find it difficult to imagine how they would be able to capture the whole of聽Ukraine.鈥�

In contrast, Ukraine has adopted many anti-corruption reforms in recent years, especially under President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The drive for clean governance and rule of law, while still far from complete, may account for much of the fighting spirit of Ukrainians and their forces.

In addition, Western countries are waking up to their tolerance for dirty wealth from Russia鈥檚 elite and the need to cut off that flow as a way to punish the regime of President Vladimir Putin. The watchdog group Transparency International found current and former Russian officials had 28,000 properties in 85 countries from 2008 to 2020.

鈥淲e鈥檙e coming for your ill-begotten gains,鈥� President Joe Biden warned in last week鈥檚 State of the Union address. Both the United Kingdom and European Union have begun the difficult task of tracking corrupt money from Russians, especially in real estate. Even the financial havens of Switzerland and Monaco have joined this transatlantic effort.

Mr. Putin鈥檚 need to maintain corruption in Russia may be one reason for the war. On Feb. 24, the starting date of the invasion, imprisoned Russian anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny said at a court hearing, 鈥淭his war between Russia and Ukraine was unleashed to cover up the theft from Russian citizens and divert their attention from problems that exist inside the country.鈥�

In large part, the war in Ukraine is a battle between Russia鈥檚 system of corrupt governance and the West鈥檚 system of accountable and transparent governance. For the West, the war is a strong reminder of what more should be done on the homefront against corruption. For Russia鈥檚 foot soldiers in Ukraine, the war up to now is a reminder of how far their country has to go.