Ukrainians take to the streets after the approval of a controversial bill that threatens the autonomy of two anti-corruption agencies.
The legislation gives the general public prosecutor that the president is appointed-the authority on the national anti-corruption agency of Ukraine (NABU) and the specialized anti-corruption officer of justice (SAPO).
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zenskyy is now confronted with the greatest protests since the Russian invasion of 2022. Demonstrants gathered outside the presidential administration in Kiev, while other protests took place in smaller cities throughout the country.
Ukrainians protest in the first wartime rally against a newly adopted law, which suggests the independence of anti-corruption institutions, in the midst of Russian attack on Ukraine, in Central Lviv, Ukraine. (Reuters/Roman Baluk)
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The mood came one day after two Nabu officials were arrested about alleged ties with Russia, According to Reuters. The outlet said that the domestic security agency of Ukraine, which carried out the arrests, also carried out background checks.
“I gathered all heads of Ukraine’s law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies, along with the Prosecutor General. It was a much-needed meeting — a frank and constructive conversation that truly helps,” Zelenskyy wrote on X. “We all share a common enemy: the Russian occupiers. And defending the Ukrainian State Requires a Strong Enough Law Enforcement and Anti-corruption System-One That Ensures a Real Sense of Justice. “
The Ukrainian President VolodyMyr Zensky and the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (not depicted) hold a joint press conference during the Ukrainian recovery conference 2025 (URC2025) in Roma Convention Center La Nuvola, in Rome, Italy. (Antonio Masiello/Getty images)
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“In fact, if this bill becomes law, the head of SAPO becomes a nominal figure, while Nabu will lose his independence and a subdivision of the office of the public prosecutor will change,” said the agencies in a joint explanation of telegram, according to the Associated Press.
The European Commissioner for Expansion Marta Kos expressed his concern about the vote and said that “the dismantling of important guarantees that protect Nabu’s independence is a serious step back.”
Zenskyy said in another X-post, after a meeting with Nabu director Semen Kryvonos, Sapo-Officer of Justsandr Klymenko, public prosecutor Ruslan Kravchenko, and head of the safety service of the Uekraine vasyly “, that” rip-in-injuring-in-inflation-inflation-in-inflation-inflation-in-injury-inflation-in-injury-inflation-in-injury-inflation-in-inn structure ” “From” Russian influence “of” Russian influence. “
Demonstrants hold placards during a meeting against a law that limits the independence of anti -corruption institutions on July 22, 2025 in Kiev, Ukraine. (Ivan Anthypenko/Suspilne Ukraine/JSC “UA: PBC”/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
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The newest movement of the Ukrainian government risks its offer to become a member of the European Union, because a performance against internal corruption is a requirement. Moreover, it could burden the warming relationship between Zenskyy and President Donald Trump, who accused the Ukrainian leader of being a “dictator without elections.”
Both the US and the EU have supported activists in Ukraine who demand that independent institutions are established and authorized to clean up corruption, According to Axios. However, the pressure fell considerably after Russia had invaded Ukraine.
