Ukrainian campaign group Razom We Stand strongly condemns the Ukrainian Parliament’s actions on adoption and President Zelensky’s decision to sign Law No. 12414, which places previously independent anti-corruption agencies under executive control. This autocratic move reverses a decade of hard-won reforms and threatens Ukraine’s rule of law, democratic aspirations, and European integration, undermining the values for which Ukrainians continue to sacrifice their lives every day.
Dr. Svitlana Romanko, Founder and Executive Director of Razom We Stand, said: ”This is a clear threat to the rule of law, demolishing the independence of anti-corruption prosecutors and undermining citizens’ hope of building a democratic, European Ukraine. It strips key institutions of their autonomy, making them indistinguishable from ordinary law enforcement agencies. The Prosecutor General, directly appointed and controlled by President Zelensky’s office, now has unchecked power to change jurisdictions, overrule investigative decisions, and dictate outcomes.
Criminal investigations into high-ranking officials will become virtually impossible, creating systemic conflicts of interest and concentrating power in a way that subverts democratic checks and balances. If Vladimir Putin wanted to sabotage Ukraine’s independence and derail our pro-European future without firing a shot, this would be the way to do it. This move from the 236 Ukrainian MPs who voted yes and President Zelensky signing the Law to come into force is dangerously undermining the rule of law, alienating Ukraine’s EU allies, and potentially jeopardising crucial aid, from the Ukraine Facility to critical investments in reconstruction, renewable energy, and EU accession. It drives a new iron curtain between Ukraine’s battlefield-defended European aspirations and the grim political reality now taking shape.”
The new law consolidates presidential control over the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), two institutions that have been key to fighting high-level corruption and protecting billions in international aid and investment. Its adoption has already sparked widespread protests (the first of their kind since Russia’s full-scale invasion) and strong criticism from Ukraine’s international partners, including the EU.
The law also poses a direct risk to Ukraine’s EU accession process and post-war reconstruction, particularly in critical sectors such as energy infrastructure, processing of energy transition minerals, and clean industrial development. The EU committed 300 billion of investments to support phasing out Russian gas in Europe by 2027 and to accelerate the transition to renewables and clean technologies.
Ukraine’s national plans and strategies, including previous declarations from President Zelensky, recognised the country’s immense potential in renewable energy and stated that rebuilding Ukraine’s energy system should involve international partners and the deployment of distributed power generation and decentralisation. Independent anti-corruption institutions have been essential to attracting private investment, rebuilding infrastructure with international aid, and securing EU and international trust. By dismantling these safeguards, Law No. 12414 endangers the foundation for a clean energy transition, green reconstruction, and sustainable economic recovery.
Razom We Stand exists to fight fossil-fuelled authoritarian regimes that trample human rights, environmental standards, and democratic values. We will not allow those same perversions of power to take root in our own country.
We call for the immediate repeal of Law No. 12414 and the restoration of independent anti-corruption oversight. Anything less risks Ukraine’s democratic future, European aspirations, and its people’s and international allies’ trust.
ENDS
Razom We Stand is a Ukraine-based campaign group active internationally. It calls for a total and permanent embargo on Russian fossil fuels and an immediate end to all investment in Russian oil and gas companies by phasing out fossil fuels globally.Svitlana Romanko has appeared in the top-tier international press, including Financial Times, Bloomberg, Politico, Der Spiegel, Le Monde, The Guardian, Washington Post, CNN, NBC, Newsweek, The Hill, Rolling Stone, and more.
