The European Union welcomes efforts to renew the requirements for electronic declaration of property for officials in Ukraine as part of anti-corruption initiatives, but would also like to see the introduction of an effective deterrent, head of the EU Delegation to Ukraine Matti Maasikas said.
“The European Union devotes considerable attention to the areas of justice, the rule of law and the fight against corruption. Here positive developments should be noted, such as the first verdicts issued by the High Anti-Corruption Court. Efforts to renew the requirement for electronic declaration of property were a step in the right direction. We would like see further improvements, in particular, the introduction of an effective deterrent,” Maasikas said at a meeting of the Commission on the coordination of the implementation of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU on Feb. 3.
According to him, in context of the urgently needed judicial reform, the EU drew attention to the alarming development of events in the Verkhovna Rada around Bill No. 4229 on amendments to the laws On the Judicial System and the Status of Judges and On the High Council of Justice on the completion of competitive procedures for holding positions of judges of local courts.
“Together with its partners from the G7 and the Venice Commission, the European Union came out with a clear position on the need to reform the High Council of Justice, as an institution that should be in the center of judicial reform,” Maasikas said.
