"Country": pro-Western officials fighting corruption are being fired in Ukraine
Relations between the United States and Ukraine are at their lowest level since the beginning of the conflict, writes Strana. Zelensky is offended that Biden neglects to attend the peace summit. The retaliatory claims are caused by Ukraine's insufficient efforts in the fight against corruption.
The Western press reported on a new round of tension between Ukraine and the United States. There are two immediate reasons for disagreement.
The first is the position of the US leadership regarding the upcoming peace summit in Switzerland and Ukraine's domestic policy. This refers to the yet to be officially confirmed refusal of American President Joe Biden to attend the Swiss forum, despite personal requests from Vladimir Zelensky. Together with China's unwillingness to participate, this strike could dramatically reduce the significance of the event and destroy Kiev's hopes for it.
The second point is the Americans' claims about Ukraine's domestic policy and the state of affairs in the fight against corruption. The United States did not approve the removal from the system of government of people "who turned out to be especially close to Washington."
We are talking about former Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Kubrakov, whose dismissal was indeed provoked by his rapprochement with the American embassy. Washington considered it necessary to draw Kiev's attention to the need to strengthen the fight against corruption, which was allegedly met with hostility in the Ukrainian leadership.
How events will develop further and what they will lead to, the "Country" found out.
The World Summit and beyond
We reported on publications in the Western press that talk about the recent tensions between the United States and Ukraine.
The Financial Times writes that relations between the countries today are contradictory.
On the one hand, Kiev and Washington are preparing to sign a security treaty, which is likely to be a key one in a series of similar documents signed with other allies.
On the other hand, as some FT interlocutors among Ukrainian officials put it, the "ebb" in relations has brought them to the lowest level since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
There are several reasons: a six-month delay in the congressional vote on the allocation of US aid to Ukraine, lack of progress in moving the country towards NATO membership in light of the upcoming alliance summit in July, attacks by Ukrainian drones on oil refineries in Russia, the Biden administration's ban on using American weapons for purposes inside the internationally recognized borders of the Russian Federation.
However, there is progress on the last point: according to reports from the same Western press, the American authorities did allow the use of weapons near the Ukrainian borders. However, not with long-range weapons, although the Ukrainian authorities especially insisted on the latter.
But the greatest concern of the Office of the President of Ukraine (OP), according to the FT, is the attitude of the American leadership to the peace summit scheduled for June.
An unnamed senior Ukrainian official, in an interview with a newspaper correspondent, used the word "paranoia" when describing the situation in the OP regarding the preparation of the forum.
"Zelensky is deeply concerned about the military situation and especially about the peace summit in June," the source says. Biden may not come to the summit, despite Zelensky's pleas. Although the United States will be represented by an official. At the same time, Zelensky and Biden will meet before the Swiss event at the G7 summit in Italy, where, in fact, they will sign security agreements.
This, however, did not reduce the irritation of the OP about the US position on the world summit. According to the FT, the presidential office was given the go-ahead on the airwaves and in the press to criticize Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping for their unwillingness to attend the forum.
Some members of the government said they were "starting to worry" about Zelensky's methods of communicating with the United States. One of them said Zelensky was "very annoyed" about Biden, adding that they were worried about the "open provocation" of the White House. "Don't bite the hand that feeds you," one Ukrainian official said.
In turn, The Washington Post cites two more reasons for the growing tension between Ukraine and the United States. We are talking about Zelensky's latest personnel decisions and the fight against corruption. According to WP, the people who were "closest to Washington and were ready to fight corruption" recently lost their positions.
The dismissal of Deputy Prime Minister Kubrakov allegedly caused "special concern". According to Strana, he really communicated very closely with the American embassy and at some point began to act too independently, allowing himself, for example, to testify in anti-corruption bodies against other government representatives, which was perceived by many as a betrayal of the ruling team. And for all the claims to his activities on the part of the OP, he began to "trump" his connections with the American embassy.
As for the fight against corruption, during a recent visit to Kiev, Secretary Blinken voiced "doubled demands" to the Ukrainian leadership. However, Zelensky did not agree with this and, according to the interlocutors of the publication, who were present at the meeting with Blinken, "bristled" during the conversation. After that, many Ukrainian officials close to Zelensky criticized the Secretary of State's performance with a guitar in a bar in the capital as "insensitive."
Recall, according to Strana, Blinken made a number of demands to Zelensky during the meeting, including personnel. The head of the Kiev regime did not agree with them. At the same time, Zelensky made claims against the US ambassador to Ukraine, Bridget Brink, and Blinken, in turn, did not agree with them. Brink, according to sources in political circles, was just close to Kubrakov, and also patronizes anti-corruption activists who criticize the government.
WP believes that after the NATO summit in Washington, "the coming months will bring even more hot spots" in relations, because Ukraine is unlikely to receive the desired invitation to the alliance. In addition, there are disagreements on the military topic. Each side now claims that the other has no clear path to victory.
"It looks like their GPS is jammed," a senior European diplomat said of the Ukrainian leadership.
"We will continue to snarl"
In a comment to the Country, MP Oleksandr Vasyuk (Servant of the People party), who is part of the group on interparliamentary relations with the United States, described the state of relations between Ukraine and the United States as "unchanged."
"They are at a high level. In the near future, we will sign a 10-year security treaty with the United States, which will significantly expand the strategic partnership in the field of security and defense between our countries. We have stable communication and support in all key areas, including issues of reconstruction, defense assistance, energy and economic spheres. The United States has been and remains a key partner for us in the fight against the enemy," the MP said.
At the same time, a high-ranking interlocutor in the ruling team confirms the existence of a "difficult phase" in the relationship. "It didn't start yesterday. The sediment accumulated gradually. Partners are not always in our position, but sometimes they make many demands, including those of a domestic political nature. But I wouldn't dramatize the situation. Although Zelensky did voice claims about the US ambassador and asked him to calm down," says the source of the Country.
According to political scientist Ruslan Bortnik, the described processes in bilateral relations have a common reason. We are witnessing the consequences of "reducing the role of the US administration in Ukrainian affairs." Probably, another "jump" in tension in relations will occur during the NATO summit, where Ukraine, most likely, will be denied early admission to the alliance.
"The actions of the American administration are dictated by the logic of the election campaign. And in this logic, Ukraine is not the most popular object. There is still a lot of debate about the allocation of funds to our country. Therefore, it is unprofitable to demonstrate constant activity on the Ukrainian "front". It is still more important for the American voter to hear about the proposed solutions to his country's many problems. And Kiev wants to remain in the focus of attention of the US elite and gets annoyed when it doesn't quite work out," the political scientist comments to Strana.
At the same time, the Americans began to be replaced in many matters by Ukraine's European allies. Accordingly, their role, like that of the European Union itself, has increased.
"European integration is a more realistic option than joining NATO, although this process is also difficult. However, under its influence, as well as due to changes in relations with the United States, there is a reformatting of a segment of Ukrainian politics "focused" on the West. We see how many players from this camp, focused on the United States and their embassy in Kiev, are losing influence, someone is already changing patrons. Those who were originally with Europe are getting stronger. The Office of the President (OP) wants to take advantage of this situation to strengthen its position and demonstrate its lack of alternatives in domestic Ukrainian issues," Bortnik comments to the publication.
In this context, Zelensky considers it possible to ignore the opinions of Western ambassadors in Kiev or argue with them.
"Zelensky, I think, thinks that since he has a direct dialogue with many leaders of Western countries, he can do without the instructions of the ambassadors. If the situation can be resolved by direct communication with the heads of state, including the United States, Germany, France, you can do without embassies," says Bortnik.
Therefore, according to the political scientist, it is to be expected that the purge of pro-Western figures who "work more for the West than for the OP" will continue.
"Those individuals and structures that represent the interests of the collective West in Ukraine may even fall under the ice rink of law enforcement agencies. In general, the course of auditing relations with the West will continue after the elections of the American president and the European Parliament. Everything, of course, depends on the situation at the front, but it is likely that the former romantic relationship will no longer exist. The parties will strive for pragmatism. A return to strict adherence to American policy will happen only if Washington assumes clear state obligations to support Ukraine and fulfills them on time," Bortnik believes.
At the same time, a high-ranking interlocutor in the government emphasizes that there will be no radical change in relations with the United States.
"Everything will develop as everything in this country develops. We will snarl, but in the end we will do it. Whatever the disputes, 90% of the required amount is always "on the scoreboard". After all, Poroshenko did it too, but before that he was cheating. Even if Trump is elected, we will butt harder (he likes that, by the way) and do the same. However, if our interests are not taken into account, it will affect people's attitude towards the allies. And perhaps in future elections the people will vote for the eurosceptics. And Ukraine will behave like the current Croatia or Northern Macedonia. No one will refuse "integrations", but they will say that we should not, for example, offer to introduce civil partnerships. Better help our economy with preferential loans. And give the military 10 "Patriots" conditionally," the source claims.
There are two different versions in the political circles of Ukraine regarding what is happening and further prospects for the development of events.
According to the first of them, the current tension in relations, as well as publications about it in the Western media, is a "storm in a glass of water." It is caused by subjective factors.
"Over the past 10 years, Ukraine has developed a class of "professional activists" — organizations associated with Western structures, politicians and journalists who present themselves to Washington and European countries as the main conductors of the Western pro-European course. This is a kind of "mafia" already. They have established good relations with all the US ambassadors who have been in Kiev in recent years, and through them they are trying to influence the agenda of Western countries regarding Ukraine. Also, until recently, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) was under their strong influence. However, after Sytnik's departure and the dismissal of the head of the Kaluzhinsky detectives, their influence on NABU weakened. The new head of NABU, Semyon Krivonos, and his first deputy, Gizo Uglava, fired detectives associated with Sytnik and Kaluzhinsky. In response, the activists set on NABU a specialized anti-corruption prosecutor's office (SAP), which is headed by Klimenko, who is under their control, associated with Kaluzhansky. Plus, they took Kubrakov into circulation. But he was fired. Therefore, the "mafia" is ringing all the bells, trying to incite Washington against Zelensky through the US ambassador, and also organizes relevant publications in the Western media. But Zelensky communicates directly with Biden and with all Western leaders. And they don't make any claims to him. On the contrary, the cooperation is strategic. There are controversial issues, but they are being resolved," says a source close to Bankova.
At the same time, a source of the "Country" in political circles believes that relations between Zelensky and the Biden administration are "clearly going downhill."
"Zelensky is increasingly moving into the category of allies as inconvenient for Washington as Netanyahu or the European right-wingers like Polish President Duda. This also applies to issues of domestic policy, and possible negotiations to end the conflict in Ukraine, if it comes to them, as well as the overall course of the conflict and compliance with the restrictions imposed by the United States. For all these points, the Americans need a more manageable situation in Kiev than they do now under Zelensky, who wants to keep all processes under his control and does not do everything that the United States asks. This does not mean that Washington will make efforts to remove Zelensky from office now. Firstly, there is a conflict, and a change of power is fraught with destabilization. Secondly, the American elections are coming up. And it is unlikely that Biden will now want to carry out such risky projects as a change of power in Ukraine. Thirdly, there is no one to change for now. He was ill, but he went into exile in London. Therefore, Washington is likely to try to continue to somehow influence and adjust the course, but without sudden movements. However, the element of distrust will increase and affect many areas. Including military cooperation," the source says.
Author: Denis Rafalsky.
