The United States and the European Union, Ukraine’s main allies against Russia, legitimately condition their military, political and financial aid on the progress made by kyiv in the fight against corruption. Opened in June 2022, Ukraine’s procedure for joining the European Union has even made it a central element. In two years of war, several concrete measures have therefore been adopted by kyiv, which must also be able to count on an effective and organized military apparatus if it wants to hope to prevail. A recognized investigator, Oleksandr Klymenko has taken over as head of the anti-corruption service of the national prosecutor’s office. “Reform offices” were integrated into key ministries, notably within the scandal-ridden Ministry of Defense, where the implementation of these reforms was entrusted to a 34-year-old Ukrainian, Yulia Marushevska.
The symptom of a broken system
”Corruption is just a symptom of a broken system”, she explains to us from kyiv. “We have never built a modern bureaucratic infrastructure. We inherited the corrupt Soviet system, and our bureaucracy grew on top of it. My job is to repair this system, zone by zone, sector by sector. We have to rebuild everything from the beginning and with political support it is possible”. Originally from Mykolaiv (southern Ukraine), with a degree in history and literature, Yulia Marushevska acquired a certain notoriety during the Maidan revolution of 2013, before training in politics, and joining the regional government of Odessa. It was there, in the country’s largest port, that he was entrusted with the management of customs in 2015. “The quantity of goods and grain that passes through Odessa every day is colossal”, she continues. “It is the country’s gateway to the sea. I was appointed with a very specific mission: to rid customs of corruption”.
”We started by removing the discretionary power of controllers and automating part of the decisions”, explains the young woman. “When I arrived, the system was so opaque that controllers decided for themselves, on a case-by-case basis, how much tax to pay on shipments. It was also realized that perishable products, such as fruits and vegetables, could remain stuck on site for days, sometimes weeks. Their owners ended up paying to get them out before they were no longer edible. Here too, we have established a simple rule: the goods must be checked within sixty minutes after unloading.”.
Ukraine: the Minister of Defense arrives against a backdrop of intense fight against corruption
Buy your freedom
Not everyone welcomed this modernization wholeheartedly. “We faced some resistance, I even got sued. But we had the direct support of President Poroshenko and the General Director of Customs”, explains Yulia Marushevska. Then things got worse, political support weakened “when it came to extending the system to all customs in the country”. In 2022, just after the Russian invasion, Yulia Marushevska still decided to join the Ministry of Defense as an advisor, before taking the head of the “reforms office”. “It’s true, a lot of corruption scandals break out, it’s normal when you’re trying to modernize a very conservative institution. The fact that it’s being talked about is actually a great thing, because it means that the culprits are finally being caught and brought to justice.”
Due to war, the Ministry of Defense has grown considerably in two years. This allowed the new “anti-corruption” team to directly attack the very lucrative public purchasing service. “We started by bringing in around a hundred people from the private sector”, explains Yulia Marushevska. “Sales engineers specializing in procurement who applied the same protocols as those of large distribution chains. New management has also been appointed for arms purchases. Just three years ago, all this would have been impossible. The war placed the ministry at the center of local and international attention. In less than two months, these measures have saved tens of millions of euros on purchases.”
Digitalization to better target
What about money from abroad? “When we talk about American aid of 60 billion dollars, you should know that it is not about cash, but 90% of military equipment. answers Yulia Marushevska.“Our job is to set up the software to monitor, trace and send this equipment to the front.” There remains the question of “petty” corruption, such as the purchase of false documents. “Here too, part of the solution lies in technology”, answers Yulia Marushevska. “UA new application will be launched in Ukraine to allow everyone to identify themselves with their passport via their mobile phone (the equivalent of ItsMe for us, Editor’s note). This will already allow for more precise monitoring, even if it is obvious that not everyone will play the game. We cannot eliminate petty corruption 100%.”. A simple and effective technique also consists of increasing small salaries in the public service, but “unfortunately this is currently not possible”.
Have members of his team ever been threatened by organized crime? “It was hotter at customs where specific criminal groups were very involved”, says Yulia Marushevska. “Within the Ministry of Defense, the risk lies mainly with those responsible for purchasing offices, because they have long made criminal organizations earn a lot of money. They have the possibility of being accompanied by security teams”.
