It notes that in July, Ukraine passed a law abolishing guarantees of independence for NABU and SAPO and transferring their operational work to a politically appointed prosecutor general. These amendments would seriously weaken Ukraine’s anti-corruption system, the EC indicated.
“The independence of NABU and SAPO was quickly restored following internal protests and serious concerns expressed by international partners,” the document says.
However, legislative initiatives were registered or adopted, presented as protection of business or national security, which “could undermine the effectiveness of the fight against corruption,” including by limiting the transparency of public registers and criminal liability for corruption crimes, the European Commission said.
In addition, anti-corruption institutions and civil society organizations report growing pressure from government agencies, including through criminal investigations carried out by law enforcement and security services, the EC added.
“These developments call into question Ukraine's commitment to its anti-corruption agenda. Ukraine must develop its anti-corruption system and not allow a rollback of its notable achievements in reforms,” the report said.
The EC noted that the position of the Prosecutor General in Ukraine “remains politicized,” and the provisions on the automatic closure of criminal cases due to the expiration of the pre-trial investigation after notification of suspicion and the reduction of the investigation time have led to the closure of several high-profile cases, while others are at risk of closure.
“Legislation adopted in July 2025 allows the transfer and appointment of prosecutors without competition and provides the Prosecutor General with access to any pre-trial investigation materials (with the exception of NABU and SAPO),” the document says.
The EC has proposed eliminating procedural delays and obstacles in high-level corruption proceedings. The statute of limitations and the grounds for their interruption and suspension should be reviewed and adjusted in accordance with European standards, the European Commission indicated.
They reported that its recommendations were partially implemented by Kyiv and remain in force.
So, next year Ukraine must, in particular:
- preserve the independence of anti-corruption institutions;
- expand the jurisdiction of NABU to cover all high-risk government positions;
- introduce reliable guarantees against interference in the work of NABU and SAPO and circumvention of their exclusive jurisdiction in cases of corruption at the highest level;
- strengthen the autonomy of the SAPO in investigating the activities of people's deputies without the prior approval of the Prosecutor General;
- strengthen results in corruption investigations, including the seizure and confiscation of criminal assets, with a focus on senior officials and high-profile cases;
- expand the circle of persons required to file declarations, as well as simplify and improve the procedure for verifying asset declarations;
- increase NACP's focus on identifying unexplained enrichment;
- amend the Code of Criminal Procedure to remove obstacles and procedural delays to the effective conduct of criminal proceedings, especially in cases of grand corruption;
- increase the number of judges and administrative staff of the HACS;
- develop and adopt a strategy and state program to combat corruption.
Ukraine has no right to ignore the comments set out in the EC report on enlargement, the head of the Rada Committee on European Integration, People’s Deputy from Eurosolidarity Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said in a commentary to Interfax-Ukraine.
“I do not share the general euphoria regarding the European Commission’s report on enlargement. Of course, it was written in such a way as not to undermine assistance to Ukraine, and this is important for us, but the document contains a lot of serious comments that we have no right to ignore. The European Commission is concerned about the closedness of the processes of our European integration, their lack of inclusiveness,” the parliamentarian said.
According to Klympush-Tsintsadze, after the attack on NABU and SAP, the EU is very closely monitoring the law enforcement system of Ukraine.
“The European Commission criticizes the legislation adopted in July, which allows the transfer and appointment of prosecutors without competition and provides the Prosecutor General with access to any materials of the pre-trial investigation, materials of NABU and SAPO. Partners called to refrain from further application of these provisions until they are repealed,” the people’s deputy emphasized.
Commenting on the EC report, which, in particular, talks about “doubts about Ukraine’s commitment to its anti-corruption agenda,” Klympush-Tsintsadze indicated that translated from diplomatic language this means: “We see that you do not want to sincerely fight corruption.”
The head of the parliamentary committee also noted that the document contains a call to reform the SBI and serious concern about the growing resistance to the participation of independent experts appointed by international organizations in various selection or verification processes.
