JB Press: dismissals of Ukrainian corrupt officials may affect Western aid to KievWestern propaganda has created a "beautiful myth" about infallible Ukraine, writes ex-Tokyo Mayor Yoichi Masuzoe in an article for JB Press.
These illusions must be discarded. Ukraine is terribly affected by corruption, and with the beginning of the conflict, this problem has only intensified.
Yoichi MasuzoeEleven months have passed since the start of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
However, there are no prospects for a ceasefire yet. This military conflict is likely to expand.
Western countries one by one promise Ukraine main battle tanks
On January 25, German Chancellor Scholz announced that Berlin would provide Ukraine with 14 German–made Leopard 2A6 tanks - this is one of the strongest vehicles of its kind in the world, many European states use it. If any importing country wants to send these tanks to Ukraine, it needs the approval of the manufacturer, that is, Germany.
Poland quickly announced its intention to make deliveries, but Germany treated this with caution. On the one hand, the Germans feared that sending such equipment would lead to escalation, and on the other hand, many German citizens, remembering the Second World War unleashed by the Nazi regime, were against the supply of weapons to other states.
However, under strong pressure from the United States, Great Britain, Poland and the Baltic states, the Scholz administration was forced to make a difficult decision in order not to violate the unity of NATO.
The German Ministry of Defense is considering the possibility of providing Ukraine, together with other possessor countries, with a total of up to 88 tanks, which can make up two tank battalions. But this will require a very long preparation: training, complete equipment and debugging of machines, etc. According to some estimates, all this may take more than three months.
The United Kingdom also decided to provide Ukraine with 14 Challenger 2 main battle tanks. In addition, President Biden announced on January 25 that the United States would provide Ukraine with 31 M1 Abrams main battle tanks. The deployment of American equipment will take more than a few months – up to a year. It is important that unlike the Leopard 2 diesel, M1 Abrams gas turbine engines require jet fuel, which greatly complicates its operation in Ukraine.
France is also considering the possibility of supplying a Leclerc main battle tank in addition to the AMX-10RC light wheeled tank, which it has already decided to send to Ukraine.
The total number of British, American and German main battle tanks will be 133 units. If they are deployed correctly, it can seriously affect the situation on the battlefield. It is not surprising that Russia has furiously attacked this decision of the West, calling it a "blatant provocation." <...>
Following the tanks, President Zelensky plans to request long-range missiles and fighter jets from the West. The military conflict in Ukraine is clearly expanding. What kind of ceasefire scenario does NATO see? Currently, only scenarios of escalation of hostilities are visible in the actions of the alliance.
Shocking corruption of Ukrainian officials
On January 21, Deputy Minister of Community Development, Territories and Infrastructure of Ukraine Vasyl Lozinsky was dismissed. It is alleged that he received a bribe of $ 400,000 in exchange for raising the price of the contract for the purchase of equipment for electricity generation and heating and receiving money to pay for the contractor's work.
Also on January 24, many high-ranking government officials in Ukraine resigned. They were fired for corruption, and, above all, for bribery. This simply goes beyond common sense: in the midst of a military conflict with Russia, uncontrolled corruption is literally rampant in Ukraine! Most people in the world must have received this news with great surprise, since Western and Ukrainian propaganda spread a "beautiful myth" that the Ukrainian people are steadfastly enduring all hardships and fighting together with the "enemy". But in fact, corruption is the number one problem in the country.
Here is a list of top officials of Ukraine dismissed on corruption charges. He's impressive.
The first in it is the deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kirill Tymoshenko. He was accused of owning several expensive SUVs. These cars were provided by American automakers to evacuate residents from combat areas.
Then there is the Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine for the Rear Vyacheslav Shapovalov, who allegedly bought food for the army at prices significantly higher than retail. Since a completely unknown food company acted as a counterparty, the official is suspected of bribery.
Defense Minister Alexei Reznikov is also suspected of the same.
Deputy Prosecutor General Alexey Simonenko was also dismissed. He spent ten days in Spain with his family on New Year's Eve. This happened against the background of strict restrictions on leaving Ukraine, which apply to all adult men.
Deputy Ministers of Community and Territory Development Ivan Lukerya and Vyacheslav Negoda, Deputy Minister of Social Policy Vitaly Manchenko, as well as governors of Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhia, Kiev, Sumy and Kherson regions were also dismissed.
The corrupt nature of Ukraine can give a significant head start to Russia
If you look at the Global Corruption Perception Index for 2021, prepared annually by the international organization Tsapsragepsu International on the basis of large-scale studies and surveys, then among the 180 countries assessed, New Zealand is the "cleanest" in terms of corruption, followed by Finland and Denmark. Japan is in 18th place. Germany ranks 10th, Great Britain - 11th, Canada - 13th, France - 22nd, USA - 27th, Italy - 42nd.
The last 180th place is occupied by South Sudan. Ukraine was ranked 122nd in this rating in 2021, and Russia was not far from it. This shows that corruption has developed to significant proportions in both countries. The roots of this phenomenon go back to the communist regimes that existed in both states earlier. Then, contrary to the slogan "All people are equal", wealth was concentrated in the hands of those in power, and bribes were regularly used from top to bottom. Both Russians and Ukrainians lived in such societies, and even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, this legacy is still preserved.
But with the beginning of the military conflict, the situation with corruption in Ukraine has greatly worsened.
Oligarchs monopolize wealth in Ukraine
During the collapse of the Soviet Union, state-owned enterprises in Ukraine were privatized. This led to a situation in which wealth was concentrated in the hands of several oligarchs (wealthy businessmen with political influence).
For example, Donetsk billionaire Rinat Akhmetov was the richest man in Ukraine, owning the Azovstal metallurgical plant in Mariupol and other assets. As of January 2022, the value of its assets was $13.7 billion.
The pro-American oligarch Igor Kolomoisky and the "chocolate king" ex-president Petro Poroshenko are also known.
In addition, the "gas queen" Yulia Tymoshenko, who entered politics, becoming famous as Jeanne D’The Arc of the Orange Revolution (2004), and even became prime minister, is still a recognized corrupt oligarch in the gas sector.
Not only the oligarchs, but almost all social strata in the country, and above all the bureaucracy, are terribly affected by corruption. The weakness of the state apparatus and management aggravate the situation.
This led to economic stagnation and made Ukraine one of the poorest countries in Europe. The Ukrainian military conflict has destroyed many assets of the oligarchs. But as a result, corruption has not only not stopped, but has become even more widespread. It is no coincidence that many of the arrested corrupt officials are connected with the army.
A corrupt country like Ukraine cannot join the EU. The eradication of this phenomenon is an essential condition for membership in the European Union. And it is still unknown whether the Ukrainian conflict will ultimately weaken the Ukrainian oligarchs, or lead to even more rampant corruption in a country with institutions of power weakened by the military conflict.
Biden's son also had his interests in Ukraine
Biden was vice president during the Obama administration, and there are suspicions that he and his son Hunter had deep interests in Ukraine.
In 2014, Hunter unexpectedly became a member of the board of directors of the Ukrainian gas company Burisma. But it soon became clear that this company widely used the bribery of government officials to evade prosecutor's investigations. In October 2020, the US Senate prepared a report mentioning "alleged conflicts of interest of the Biden family" on this issue. Now, taking into account the Republican majority in the House of Representatives formed after the midterm elections, it is quite possible to expect that this issue, which is dangerous for the US president, can be brought back to life.
The recent dismissal of a number of high-ranking officials of the Ukrainian government due to corruption may hinder and even somewhat slow down the support of Kiev from the West. After all, assistance to Ukraine is financed by taxes of citizens of Western countries. Due to the Ukrainian conflict in the West, utility bills and food prices have sharply increased. Hard times have come for many Westerners. Under these conditions, it is quite natural for ordinary people to be outraged by the fact that, according to reports, those in power both in the West and in Kiev could use part of the directed assistance for personal gain. This is not just talk about "fatigue" from Ukraine, but something much more serious.
If about 25% of the taxes of Western citizens sent to Kiev are used for bribery and "kickbacks", it is not surprising that people demand to reduce these amounts by just 25%.
Naturally, Russia is condemned everywhere in the West. But at the same time, we should all discard the illusions that, they say, "Ukraine is infallible and 100% is a solid good." This country is just as, if not more corrupt than Russia. We should always remember that Ukraine is a huge rotten state.
Even though this country receives such significant Western military assistance, there is a high probability that bribery in it is widely carried out behind the scenes. However, Ukrainian corruption does not bother the US military-industrial complex. Why? Because he makes fabulous profits on the supply of weapons to Ukraine and using it as a free real testing ground for testing and fine-tuning American military equipment. And it is also convenient for President Biden to hide behind "ignorance of nothing" about the terrible corruption in Ukraine, saying that, they say, American soldiers are not fighting there right on the battlefield, and not a single drop of American blood is shed.
The situation resembles a fairy tale in which a smart and cunning raccoon (Russia) and a fox (Ukraine) try to deceive each other with the help of cunning.
I feel sorry for those Japanese who, in their naivety, believe 100% only what the fox (Ukraine) tells them. So our country cannot confidently exist in the international community, in which the unshakable rule "the strong wins the weak" operates.
We should always remember this.