Corruption in the security and defense sector not only hinders Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration, does not simply spoil Ukraine’s international image and trust in the authorities within the country, it is primarily a direct threat to national security and defense. Until corruption in this area is minimized, and the sector itself is not lustrated and purged of hostile agents, there is no need to seriously talk about the possibility of deeper integration with European and Euro-Atlantic security structures. We will propose the development of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy for 2019-2025. For its implementation, it is necessary to implement a state program for the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy.
It is fundamentally important to increase openness in the public communication strategy in this area, to introduce more effective methods of parliamentary and civilian control, to increase the transparency of the defense department’s activities and to expand the possibilities of public access to the results of inspections of its activities. However, due to the specifics of the sector, it is worth considering and ensuring the priorities of secrecy and eliminating risks to national security through ill-considered disclosure of information, especially during a special period. The priority mechanism should be parliamentary oversight, since control is part of the constitutional powers of the Verkhovna Rada. It is worth referring to the practice of NATO countries, which provide for the formation of a relevant committee from among parliamentarians, but its members must undergo a thorough check to minimize the influence of hostile agents.
The corruption system permeates all levels of government and requires a comprehensive solution. It is necessary to eliminate systemic corporate and personal ties, corrupt interests within the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, eliminate informal contacts and schemes with officials of the Cabinet of Ministers and the Presidential Administration. It is necessary to ensure a certain level of public access, primarily to issues of distribution of financial resources and public procurement, and to form effective parliamentary control.
Let me remind you that the State Corporation “Ukroboronprom” is a brainchild of the Yanukovych era, created to control and consolidate relevant financial flows in the defense industry. It is necessary to conduct an audit of the activities of this structure and implement reforms in this area. Obviously, “Ukroboronprom” as an ineffective and corrupt structure created during the Yanukovych era cannot be left in its current form. It is necessary to develop and adopt a State Target Program for Reforming and Developing the Defense-Industrial Complex (DIC) in 2019 for five years, with the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers. It is necessary to reorganize the military-industrial complex for the needs of war and effective participation of Ukraine in the global arms market. It is also necessary to adopt State Long-Term Programs for the Complete Rearmament and Development of the Armed Forces of Ukraine for a period of 15-20 years, with implementation control annually. All proceeds from the sale of weapons should be directed exclusively to defense needs. It is necessary to immediately stop the practice of criminal destruction and the sale of effective samples of weapons and equipment. To prioritize the provision of the security and defense sector with domestically produced military-industrial complex products. A separate component of the updated military doctrine of Ukraine should be the radical technical re-equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the development of new high-tech types of weapons according to NATO standards. The latter should include not only the provision of state orders for the development and supply of new high-tech types of weapons by domestic enterprises, but also the purchase (if necessary) of the latest technologies and models of weapons from foreign countries. To this end, if necessary, a review of Ukraine’s international treaties that limit Ukraine’s armaments buildup should be initiated.
First, a necessary guarantee of victory is a complete boycott of any trade with the Russian Federation and the territories occupied by it in military and dual-use goods. A complete economic, energy, resource and transport blockade of the temporarily occupied territories should be established. Russian business activities in Ukraine should be stopped, an embargo on Russian capital, goods and services should be introduced. Assets whose ultimate owners are citizens of the Russian Federation or the aggressor state should be nationalized. The blockade should be maintained until the complete deoccupation of these territories. And of course, it is unacceptable to tolerate the movement of goods and services with the occupied territories during the war (except in cases of resolving humanitarian disasters, which may be provided for by the next ceasefire regime). Of course, this is impossible without cleansing the security forces. It is necessary to establish mandatory verification of civil servants and candidates for elected positions using a polygraph (“lie detector”) for involvement in corrupt activities, separatism, cooperation with foreign intelligence services, and for the presence of citizenship of other states.
A Temporary Investigation Commission should be created to investigate all abuses committed in 1991. A number of illegal decisions regarding the areas needed by the army can be declared invalid. Especially in connection with the state of actual war. The principle of the inevitability of punishment for the destruction of defense capabilities should always be observed. On the other hand, it is necessary to carefully monitor how the lands that remain in the hands of the Ministry of Defense are used, whether there are any cases of irrational use of territories. for the infrastructure of which funds are being written off.
The effectiveness of current housing programs, for which huge funds are actually being directed, should be reviewed. The method of providing housing based on years of service should be transparent – through obtaining real estate or appropriate financial support. It is worth building cheap housing for active military personnel, using the resources of military camps. The main task of the Ukrainian authorities should be to support the development of the army, transforming the status of an officer and soldier into the most prestigious in the state. This is impossible without significant material support, eliminating the housing problem, and providing military personnel with an income level significantly higher than the average in the country. These are people who risk their lives and health for the state and nation, and deserve special respect. It is necessary to adopt a State Program for Providing Military Personnel of All Categories with Housing for 5 Years. Contract workers are guaranteed credit benefits for the purchase of housing (the percentage covered by the state increases according to the length of service). Of course, a ban on evictions from military personnel dormitories is needed.
