(23 Jul 2025)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Kyiv, Ukraine – 22 July 2025
1. Various of a crowd near the Presidential Office of Ukraine
2. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Oleh Symoroz, 28, Ukrainian veteran: ++SOUNDBITE STARTS ON PREVIOUS SHOT AND IS OVERLAID BY SHOT3 AND PARTIALLY BY SHOT4++
"We still have big problems with top corruption, especially the one that eats up a huge amount of our Ukrainian GDP in a warring country. Instead, we see how the President of Ukraine, instead of being an example, being the locomotive of this history of struggle and demonstrating zero tolerance for corruption, is now using his own resources to take control of the criminal proceedings of his entourage."
3. Various of people protesting
4. Various of 28-year-old Ukrainian veteran Oleh Symoroz protesting in wheelchair with a poster READING (Ukrainian): "Veto the bill number 12414"
5. SOUNDBITE (Ukrainian) Ihor Lachenkov, 26, Ukrainian activist: ++SOUNDBITE IS OVERLAID BY SHOT6++
"It is important to fight corruption so that more money goes to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The more effectively the government uses our resources and there is less corruption, the more we will be able to direct resources to our defense, to our fight."
6. Various of people protesting against bill weakening anti-corruption agencies next to Ukrainian Presidential Office UPSOUND (Ukrainian): "Veto the bill!"
STORYLINE:
Thousands of people gathered in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on Tuesday to urge the president to veto a controversial bill that threatens anti-corruption infrastructure. It marked the first major rally against the government in more than three years of war.
Ukraine ’s parliament passed legislation that will tighten oversight of two key anti-corruption agencies, which critics say could significantly weaken their independence and give President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s circle greater sway over investigations. Zelenskyy signed the bill into law, according to the parliament’s website late Tuesday.
Fighting entrenched corruption is crucial for Ukraine’s bid to join the European Union and maintain access to billions of dollars in Western aid. The legislation’s passage has triggered public outrage in Ukraine, with some saying it appeared to be a greater moral blow than the routine Russian drone and missile attacks.
The changes would grant the prosecutor general new authority over investigations and cases handled by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO).
“In effect, if this bill becomes law, the head of SAPO will become a nominal figure, while NABU will lose its independence and turn into a subdivision of the prosecutor general’s office,” the agencies said in a joint statement on Telegram.
In a post on X, the EU’s Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos expressed concern over the vote in the parliament, called the Rada, calling it “a serious step back.”
Kos added: “Independent bodies like NABU & SAPO are essential for Ukraine’s EU path. Rule of Law remains in the very center of EU accession negotiations.”
While rallies have taken place during the war in Ukraine, they have largely focused on the return of prisoners of war or missing people. Protests, however, remain a traditional form of public pressure in Ukraine, where two previous revolutions were victorious for the public.
“Corruption is a problem in any country, and it must always be fought,” said Ihor Lachenkov, a blogger and activist who urged people to join the protest through his social media platforms, which reach more than 1.5 million followers.
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