The Anti-corruption Action Centre, the NGO I chair, is probably one of the loudest watchdogs in Ukraine that is monitoring President Volodymyr Zelensky and his administration. We expose corruption, advocate for comprehensive rule-of-law reforms, and demand better governance – even during war. For over a decade we have built anti-corruption infrastructure in Ukraine, and endured persecution for simply carrying out our work. We want to strengthen Ukrainian institutions and build a more effective, resilient democracy.
Most popular
Jonathan Sacerdoti
The leaked email that blows apart the BBC’s impartiality claims over Gaza
It’s unacceptable for any foreign leader (even of the United States) to humiliate our president, decide on behalf of the Ukrainian people that we should hold elections, and spread falsehoods about who started the war. It is the fundamental right of the Ukrainian people to love or hate their president, to support or criticise him. We, not officials in Moscow or Washington, elect our leaders and hold them accountable. For these freedoms the Ukrainian people have been fighting a large-scale war for three years, following an act of Russian aggression that was originally predicted to last only three days.
More than 400 Ukrainian civil society organisations signed a statement against holding elections until security guarantees are in place to ensure a ceasefire and a sustainable peace. Ukrainians have entrusted Zelensky, along with our parliament and the government, to lead the country in war.
Unlike Russia, our presidents change frequently through free and fair elections. However, Ukraine’s constitution forbids holding elections under martial law – restrictions put in place to mobilise our armed forces to defend a frontline over 600 miles long from constant Russian attacks. Lifting martial law would trigger demobilisation, sending our frontline troops and air defence operators home. It would be the perfect moment for Russia to finish us off. If anyone expects Russia to honour a ceasefire, remember that Russian forces have repeatedly violated ceasefire agreements that were reached during the Minsk negotiations in 2014. Ukraine can only hold elections once Russian troops are properly deterred or have withdrawn from our territory.
Another clause in our constitution declares that Ukraine’s natural resources belong to its people. This simple principle means that no Ukrainian president, without the support of the people, has the right to sign an extortionate deal over our strategic minerals – even, again, if it is at the behest of the US president. This constitutional safeguard is one of President Zelensky’s strongest cards. A deal that forces Ukraine to relinquish its natural resources to the US without any security guarantees would be a humiliating proposition that the Ukrainian people would never accept.
I want to believe that the noble American people stand behind freedom fighters rather than war criminals
We are extremely thankful for all of the support already provided to Ukraine by the American people, and it is clear that American taxpayers cannot be expected to fund our defence indefinitely. The US has its own challenges, and the war is taking place a long way away, or as Trump puts it, across a ‘big, beautiful ocean’. Instead, Ukraine could benefit from access to $300 billion (£240 billion) in frozen Russian assets, most of which are currently being held in Europe. These funds should be invested in American, European and Ukrainian weaponry to build a robust shield against further advances by Russian military forces. This would create additional jobs in the US and European defence industries.
In 1994, Ukraine signed the Budapest Memorandum, relinquishing our nuclear arsenal in exchange for security assurances from three powerful nuclear nations: Britain, Russia and the United States. Since then, one signatory – Russia – has invaded Ukraine, while another – the US – seems to have suddenly chosen to blame the victim and extort Ukraine.
Thank God for the United Kingdom, which has kept its promises. In early March 2022, I publicly challenged Boris Johnson at a press conference in Warsaw, asking why he had not come to Kyiv to help us defend against the invader – especially given the UK’s commitment to the Budapest Memorandum. Boris Johnson was among the first foreign leaders to visit Ukraine in the spring of 2022, and since then the United Kingdom has stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the Ukrainian people. This is what freedom, strength and dignity truly mean. I also dream of a day when Donald Trump demonstrates his strength by coming to Kyiv to show his support to the strong Ukrainian people, who are fighting for freedom.
We will continue to defend our country and our right to exist. We understand that the alternative is not genuine peace but a scenario in which our people are eventually exterminated and subjected to genocide by Russia – with other European nations likely to follow. If the US president chooses to empower Russia to commit such atrocities, that is his decision to make, and it is up to the American people, who elected him, to support it or not. I want to believe that the noble American people stand behind freedom fighters rather than war criminals who kidnap and rape children, torture women and behead prisoners of war. The world should have learned by now that the Ukrainian people will never surrender.
Comments