Page 6 - UKRRptOct21

2.0 Politics
2.1 Ukraine’s spluttering Judicial Reform
In a statement released on September 13, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy promised to “prevent judicial reform from derailing.” This came after Ukraine’s Council of Judges failed to delegate three representatives to the Ethics Council. “This raises concerns about advancing judicial reform due to the halt of its most important part — cleaning up the judicial system,” reads the statement from the President’s Office.
The Verkhovna Rada adopted two key bills aimed at overhauling Ukraine’s judiciary back in July. This included legislation that envisages the creation of the Ethics Council — an independent body responsible for verifying the integrity of candidates to and members of the High Council of Justice (HCJ). The new legislation also called for the creation of a Selection Commission to shortlist candidates for the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ).
Crucially, both selection panels are set to include three international legal experts. Ukraine’s Western partners submitted their lists of recommended foreign experts on September 10.
After the Council of Judges failed to select its delegates for the Ethics Council, activists from the Anti-Corruption Action Center (AntAC) accused its members of “sabotaging judicial reform.” AntAC expert Halyna Chyzhyk condemned the council for violating the law and disrespecting both Ukrainians and the country’s international partners. AntAC also criticized the candidates the Council of Judges put forward for the Selection Commission of the HQCJ, naming and shaming two of them as “openly corrupt.”
“Every illegal action aimed at blocking judicial reform will be immediately evaluated and rebuffed. I will not allow judges, who hamper the reform and the cleanup of the judicial system, to deprive the Ukrainians of the right to justice,” Zelenskiy said in Monday’s statement. Accordingly, the Ukrainian president is scheduled to hold a meeting with the heads of judicial bodies, parliamentary representatives, and G7 ambassadors.
2.3 Politics - misc
Russia Concerns over NATO membership for Ukraine reported RadioSvoboda. Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that Russia staunchly opposes the idea of NATO membership for Ukraine and added that Putin has repeatedly noted the issue of the potential broadening of NATO infrastructure on Ukrainian territory "would cross red lines." Speaking in Kyiv, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba sharply rejected the notion of a Russian "red line" outside of its own borders. "Putin's 'red lines' are limited to
6 UKRAINE Country Report October 2021 www.intellinews.com