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Europe The Economist December 9th 2017 51

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52 Arms control in Europe
53 Corruption in Turkey
53 Russia’s bitcoin miners
54 Corsican nationalism
54 Russian sports doping
55 Charlemagne: Little briar Merkel

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Turmoil in Ukraine tion activists and opposition politicians
Revolution devolution are under pressure. Mr Saakashvili’s allies
have been harassed. Some journalists fear
for their safety. Exhausted by war and still
lacking functioning institutions, Ukraine
risks descending into feudal violence. Oli-
garchs are now measured not just by their
money, loyal MPsand private TV channels,
KIEV but also by the size oftheirarmed forces.
The hope ofreform is being betrayed bylocal corruption and foreign indifference
One of the most powerful figures is Ar-
KRAINE is in turmoil—again. Protes- Mr Poroshenko’s attempted show of sen Avakov, the interior minister and a
Uters are blocking streets and chanting force ended up exposing his weakness, as business tycoon. Mr Avakov controls the
Bandu het! (“Bandits out!”). Smoke again well as that of a state plagued by secret police and the national guard, as well as a
permeates Kiev’s chilly air. The police are deals and graft. The root of the crisis lies in television channel. Formally Mr Avakov is
again trying to clear out protesters’ tents. the failure of the governing elites to meet in coalition with MrPoroshenko, butin fact
The scale is smaller than four years ago, the Maidan revolution’s main demand: he views him as a rival oligarch. Mr Ava-
when demonstrators on Maidan square endingthe country’s oligarchic system. kov wants to shift Ukraine towards a par-
overthrew the corrupt regime of President The hope that Ukraine’s corrupt elites liamentary system that would give each
Viktor Yanukovych. But once again, Uk- could themselves reform Ukraine and in- powerplayerhis due.
raine’s viability as a state is at stake. troduce the rule oflaw was never high. But Ukraine’ssquabblingelitestake little re-
The catalyst of the latest upheaval is theirdependence on Western support, and sponsibility for their state, uniting only to
Mikheil Saakashvili, a former president of the West’s alliance with Ukraine’s thriving battle the civil activists and independent
Georgia who entered Ukrainian politics civil-society activists, gave some cause for institutions that threaten their oligopoly.
after the Maidan uprising to help fight cor- optimism. Both these factors have since The most critical battle is around the Na-
ruption. After serving as governor of the weakened. Civil society has failed to build tional Anti-Corruption Bureau(NABU), the
Odessa region, Mr Saakashvili turned political muscle, while the European Un- sole credible institution that pressure from
against Petro Poroshenko, Ukraine’s presi- ion is suffering Ukraine fatigue. Most im- civil society and Western backers has
dent, who responded by stripping him of portant, says Yulia Mostovaya, the editor brought into being. Trained by America’s
his Ukrainian citizenship while he was of Zerkalo Nedeli, an independent weekly, FBI, NABU started to attack serious vested
abroad. (He had already lost his Georgian is that America no longer has a compre- interests in Ukraine, provoking an inevita-
citizenship.) Bundled through a border hensive Ukraine policy. ble counter-attack.
post by his supporters, the stateless Mr The fight escalated in October, after
Saakashvili defiantly re-entered the coun- Reform deformed NABU detained Mr Avakov’s son in con-
try and, on December 3rd, staged a rally American policy now focuses on security, nection with the suspected embezzlement
callingforMrPoroshenko’s impeachment. giving short shrift to internal problems. of $521,000 through a contract to supply
Two days later Ukraine’s security ser- President Donald Trump has little interest backpacks to the interior ministry. Mr Ava-
vices came to arrest him. Mr Saakashvili in state-building in Ukraine. (He may also kov perceived this as a declaration of war
climbed to the top ofan eight-storey build- resent Ukraine for helping American in- by Mr Poroshenko, and dispatched nation-
ing and rallied his supporters from the vestigators to indict Paul Manafort, his for- al guardsmen and police officers to block
roof. When agents grabbed him, the crowd mer campaign manager.) No senior official roads in Kharkiv to prevent his son’s arrest.
blocked their van and freed him. With one keeps watch over Ukrainian politicians. “It Mr Avakov, who previously backed NABU
wriststill danglinga handcuff, MrSaakash- is a test of Ukrainian democracy without asa counterweightagainstMrPoroshenko,
vili led his supporters to the Rada, Uk- America,” says Ms Mostovaya. withdrew his support, leavingit exposed.
raine’s parliament, to demand Mr Porosh- Over the past few months the situation On November 29th the prosecutor gen-
enko’s resignation. in Ukraine has deteriorated. Anti-corrup- eral’s office, controlled by Mr Poroshenko, 1