海角大神

Dmytro Koziatynskyi聽was still acclimating to his reentry into civilian life after three years of military service when he read in July about a proposed law that would gut Ukraine鈥檚 independent anti-corruption institutions.

鈥淚 thought, 鈥楾his is not what I fought in this existential war for,鈥欌�� says the veteran, who now works at a Kyiv nonprofit providing rehabilitation for wounded soldiers. 鈥淚 thought this law would be against our integration into Europe and the future I see for Ukraine.鈥�

So Mr. Koziatynskyi聽turned to his blog, where he asked his 12,000 social media followers to consider joining him the next day in central Kyiv in a peaceful protest against the proposed legislation.

The response astounded even Mr. Koziatynskyi.

In what was Ukraine鈥檚 first major protest since Russia鈥檚 full-scale invasion in February 2022, thousands of Ukrainians, mostly young people, filled a square not far from Maidan, the historic public space that was ground zero for Ukraine鈥檚 2013 pro-democracy revolution.

By Day 2, the crowd swelled to more than 10,000 people.

鈥淚 thought I would be happy if a few people from my social bubble joined me,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut it was amazing to see that thousands of people felt strongly enough about this issue to answer the call.

鈥淚t really showed me, and I think the world,鈥� he adds, 鈥渉ow important this battle against corruption is to Ukrainian people.鈥�

A shaken government scuttled the proposed law, leaving the country鈥檚 two primary anti-corruption institutions intact and, crucially, independent.

Blow to Zelenskyy

The significance of the victory in the summer鈥檚 鈥渂attle against corruption,鈥� as Mr. Koziatynskyi聽calls it, was underscored in November when a giant energy sector kickback scandal detonated in President Volodymyr Zelenskyy鈥檚 inner circle of aides and close advisers.

According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, one of the independent agencies the defeated legislation would have weakened, senior officials 鈥� including Mr. Zelenskyy鈥檚 powerful confidant and business partner Tymur Mindich 鈥� skimmed some $100 million from contracts to fortify the battered energy sector.

By the end of November, the investigation also took down Mr. Zelenskyy鈥檚 closest adviser, Andriy Yermak.

The erupting scandal was a blow to Mr. Zelenskyy just as he was pressing Ukraine鈥檚 case in talks with international partners over U.S. President Donald Trump鈥檚 proposed peace plan to end Russian President Vladimir Putin鈥檚 war in Ukraine. Mr. Yermak had been leading Ukraine鈥檚 delegation in talks with the Trump administration.

European leaders in particular cautioned Mr. Zelenskyy that they would have an increasingly difficult time convincing their constituents to support substantial aid packages for a country seen to be rife with corruption.

鈥淭hey do have a massive corruption situation going on there [in Ukraine],鈥� Mr. Trump told reporters this month.

For Ukrainians themselves, the corruption scandal is something of a double-edged sword.

Yes, many lament, this scandal now dubbed 鈥淢indichgate鈥� is a sobering reminder that a culture of corruption that took hold under the Soviet Union still lurks in the halls of power. More disheartening still is how this case involves the energy sector and money intended in part for repairs to keep the lights and heat on just as Ukrainians face a harsh winter of intensified Russian attacks on the sector.

The system worked

But on the other hand, many Ukrainians find solace in the fact that the country鈥檚 anti-corruption apparatus not only functioned and withstood efforts to dismantle it, but has proved strong enough to pursue even some of the country鈥檚 most powerful.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no question that this is a bad scandal. It鈥檚 discouraging and damaging for all of us in Ukraine,鈥� says Iryna Podolyak, a former member of Parliament who is now director of development and investigative projects at independent anti-corruption center聽NGL.media in Lviv.

鈥淏ut the positive side of something very bad is that we have seen because of it that the country鈥檚 anti-corruption infrastructure works pretty well. And that functioning of public institutions has encouraged people to see this as our fight,鈥� she adds. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a fight for what Ukraine will look like after the war.鈥�

This split-screen perspective that finds 鈥淢indichgate鈥� to be simultaneously disheartening and encouraging is widespread in Ukraine.

鈥淢any people have taken the news of this scandal and then the way it has developed and concluded that we are facing a paradox,鈥� says Volodymyr Fesenko, director of the Penta Center for Political Studies in Kyiv. 鈥淭hey see that a deeply rooted system of corruption is still with us,鈥� he says. 鈥淏ut at the same time they see the anti-corruption infrastructure of Ukraine鈥檚 democracy working and able to reach the very top of the country鈥檚 power structure.鈥�

What kind of long-term blow the scandal will deal to Ukraine鈥檚 international reputation remains to be seen. But overall perceptions of corruption in Ukraine have been slowly ameliorating over the decade since the democratic revolution.

Transparency International鈥檚 respected Corruption Perceptions Index, which gauges perceived levels of public sector corruption, shows Ukraine鈥檚 score improving over the past 10 years 鈥� although it did dip slightly in 2023.

Main problem is still the war

Many analysts say there is a strong desire for more than gradual progress, however 鈥� something closer to an anti-corruption revolution 鈥� but that the war is tempering public demands for internal progress when the top priority is confronting an external enemy.

鈥淧eople realize that the country needs to find a balance,鈥� Mr. Fesenko says. 鈥淭here鈥檚 an understanding that we can鈥檛 be fighting an internal political war at the same time as we are in a full war with Russia.鈥�

Ms. Podolyak puts it this way: 鈥淢ost people realize that right now Ukraine鈥檚 main problem is not corruption, it鈥檚 the war with an enemy who wants to erase our existence,鈥� she says. 鈥淚f we don鈥檛 survive as a state, it doesn鈥檛 matter if we are corrupt or not.鈥�

As for Mr. Koziatynskyi, the soldier who may have saved Ukraine鈥檚 anti-corruption institutions with his summer protests, events have convinced him that the country is able to fight corruption and an 鈥渆xistential鈥� war at the same time.

鈥淚 think we鈥檝e learned that our society is mature enough to support and demand a strong anti-corruption effort even as we fight a war,鈥� Mr. Koziatynskyi聽says.

鈥淚 know some people say that exposing the dirty actions of some officials in high places only feeds the Russian disinformation claims that Ukraine is a corrupt country,鈥� he adds. 鈥淏ut for me, the way our institutions have worked to expose the corruption is the best answer to Putin.鈥�

Oleksandr Naselenko supported reporting for this story.