Ukraine Moves Closer To Anticorruption Court, But Doubts Remain
By RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service
Ukraine's parliament has approved the first reading of legislation creating an anticorruption court demanded by protest groups and the country’s external backers, although critics charge the effort does not go far enough.
The draft law, which was presented by President Petro Poroshenko in December, won the support of 282 of the 450 deputies on March 1 in the parliament, known as the Verkhovna Rada.
In an apparent response to demands from Western allies as well as protesters camped outside parliament in Kyiv, Poroshenko last year vowed to push for legislation creating an anticorruption court.
However, some reformers within Ukraine and allies in Europe have expressed concerns the legislation does not meet standards set by the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission, a group of independent experts in constitutional law, and the requirements of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In January, the IMF said that "several provisions [of the bill] are not consistent with the commitments of the authorities."
"In its current form…we would not be able to support the draft law," the IMF added.
Critics have charged that the current legislation does not ensure the selection of independent anticorruption judges.
Ahead of the vote, Verkhovna Rada speaker Andriy Parubiy called on the lawmakers to support the proposed law, saying its text could be amended before the second and final reading.
Maksym Burbak, the head of the People's Front faction in the ruling coalition, said that "between the first and second readings, we will take into account all recommendations of the Venice Commission."
After the vote in parliament, Poroshenko said in a televised speech that a final reading of the law “should be definitively approved in the spring.”
"I call on MPs not to delay adoption as a whole," the president wrote on his Facebook page.
Leaders of the European Union and International Monetary Fund (IMF) have demanded anticorruption reforms in Ukraine, which last year ranked 130th out of 180 countries rated by Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index.
On February 28, the European Commission moved closer to approving a 1 billion euro ($1.22 billion) financial package to Ukraine, although officials said they were awaiting further signs by Kyiv that the reform process remained on track before the funds would be delivered.
The IMF has called the establishment of an anticorruption court a "benchmark" of Ukraine's progress toward Western legal standards and has said it would help ease the release of its loans in the future.
With reporting by Reuters and AFP
That concludes our live-blogging of the Ukraine crisis for Thursday, March 1, 2018. Check back here tomorrow for more of our continuing coverage. Thanks for reading and take care.
U.S. State Department Approves 'Javelin' Missile Sale To Ukraine
By RFE/RL
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. State Department has approved the proposed sale of Javelin antitank missiles and launch units to Ukraine in a deal worth about $47 million, the U.S. military says.
"The Javelin system will help Ukraine build its long-term defense capacity to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity in order to meet its national defense requirements," the Pentagon said in a statement on March 1.
“The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region,” it added.
In December, Washington prompted protests from Russia when it decided to provide lethal defensive weaponry, which some U.S. officials said would include the Javelin antitank missiles, to support Kyiv in its nearly four-year conflict with Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency said that Ukraine had requested 210 Javelin missiles, 37 command launch units, and related hardware. Training, technical assistance, transportation, and other aspects of logistics will be included in the deal, it said.
Officials in Ukraine and the United States had indicated that they were expecting the approval from the State Department. The notice of approval was required by law but does not mean a deal is finalized, the Pentagon said.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on February 28 said the first delivery of weapons from the United States was expected in weeks.
"The first delivery of the weapons will take place in several weeks. We are talking about a number of different deliveries, starting with the antisniper devices, because many Ukrainian soldiers were killed by Russian snipers," Poroshenko said.
He added that other military equipment expected from Washington included tools for electronic warfare, air defense, and other kinds of weapons.
"I cannot give all the details as the data is classified," Poroshenko added.
Since April 2014, more than 10,300 people have been killed in fighting between Kyiv's forces and the separatists who control parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
With reporting by Christopher Miller in Kyiv
Formidable weapon: U.S. soldiers/Marines fire an FGM-148 Javelin antitank missile during live fire training exercise: