It is not a secret that Ukraine is going through a security and economic crisis of enormous dimension.
On April 24 Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk told Ukrainian lawmakers:
“The government believes Ukraine will return to growth in 2016, although that projection is hostage to events in industrial eastern regions where fighting continues against Russian-backed separatists… The conflict that has raged over the past year has cost Ukraine the loss of one-fifth of its economy.”
Most of Russian propaganda publications predict failure of all plans for the survival of Ukraine as an independent country. The media harshly criticizes all the reforms introduced lately by the Ukrainian government.
Nevertheless several recent publications in Russian Internet praise the reforms, as actions that give hope to build a new Ukraine, strong and integrated in Europe.
Ukraine lately announced a complete break with its Communist past with the publication of all secret archives of KGB (something that has never happened in Russia). The education system of Ukraine has been completely altered to fit European standards.
Some of the Ukrainian reforms have unique Ukrainian character. Prior to the Russian aggression, the Ukrainian army was in a condition affectively close to nonexistence. Its rebuilding was made mostly not by government, which had no money, but by the wealthiest oligarchs. The oligarchs tended to keep control over the regiments created by their money. Today the Ukrainian Army is mostly financed by the help of thousands of small businessmen, who do it as volunteers, motivated only by their personal patriotic feelings. Such a unique system is rooted in the historical traditions of Ukraine.
But the main thrust of the new reforms is due to the President Poroshenko’s decision to give most of the top government positions to foreign specialists, who have experience in solving unique problems.
The former president of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili heads the Ukraine’s International Council for Reforms – an advisory body whose main task is working out proposals and recommendations for implementation and introduction of reforms in Ukraine based on best international practices.
Saakashvili thinks that the appointment of foreigners to the top positions in the Ukrainian government will not only bring the best specialists to the country, it will also help to fight one of the biggest problems of Ukraine: corruption.
Here is a quote from the interview with Saakashvilly published last week on the site www.snob.ru:
“As the President, Poroshenko has done a very offbeat thing. After all, how it was usually happening in Ukraine? When the new Prime Minister and the new President were making appointments in the government, they had quotas, and the President always could appoint more positions. They planted their men in ‘profitable places’. Ministries and departments had controlled state-owned enterprises; state-owned enterprises siphoned ‘black cash’ and distributed it to their friends on the top.
“Poroshenko sought out foreigners who have no personal connections in Ukraine for all ministerial posts within the presidential authority. He gave top government positions to people whom he hardly knew! It was very unusual action by local standards. The fact is that after Poroshenko became President, the size of his personal wealth fell sharply.”
Recently the Razumkov Centre, a Ukrainian Centre for Economic and Political Studies published results of a survey reflecting today’s political position of Ukrainians. Two thousands and nine respondents were interviewed in all regions of Ukraine, with the exception of the occupied territories of the Crimea, Donetsk and Lugansk regions. Sampling error does not exceed 2.3% with a probability of 0.95.
52% of Ukrainians believe that Ukraine should join the European Union, while accession to the Customs Union, created by Russia (union of Russia, Kazakhstan, Belorussia and Armenia), is supported only by 12%.
The Center noted that in May 2013 accession to the EU was supported by 41.7%, and the entry into the Customs Union – by 31%. Which means that Putin’s aggressive politics aimed to bringing Ukraine back to unity with Russia got results completely opposite to Putin’s desires.
47.7% of Ukrainian citizens think that relations with the EU countries are the main priority for Ukrainian foreign policy; only 10% find contacts with Russia more important.
In the case of referendum on accession to NATO, a positive vote would be 43.3%. 31.6% of Ukrainians are against joining. Back in April last year, 36.7% were for the accession, 41.6% against it.
Most citizens of Ukraine expressed a positive attitude towards the European Union (58.7%) and the U.S. (53.5%). 44.7% Ukrainians expressed a positive attitude to NATO.
The majority of respondents expressed a negative attitude to Russia (67.3%) and the Customs Union (60.8%).
The negative attitude to Russian President Vladimir Putin this year increased from 70.8% to 75.5% and towards the citizens of Russia – from 16.6% to 25.9%. Positive attitude to the Russian fell from 44.9% to 28.9%.
46.7% of Ukrainians support the introduction of visa requirements with Russia (against – 40.6%). In April last year, such a requirement was supported by only 26% of respondents; 59.5% of Ukrainians were against it.
Petro Poroshenko, the President of Ukraine wrote in The Guardian on April 24, 2015:
“Our war on corruption will bring us closer to EU membership and ensure that in the new Ukraine no one is above the law.
“Post-independence Ukraine has often failed to match the promises made to its citizens and the international community. Despite a particularly challenging environment, the new Ukraine is determined to live up to its obligations. Ukraine will push forward on its path to the European Union in spite of the many obstacles.
“Ukraine’s future is in Europe – we have chosen our path.”
