On Nov. 11, the Ukrainian parliament passed the first reading of a prosecution reform bill that anti-corruption watchdogs have lambasted as an imitation and sabotage. To become law, the measure requires a second parliamentary vote and presidential signature. The legislation responds to Operation Carthage, a sweeping National Anti-Corruption Bureau investigation into scam call centers, drug trafficking, counterfeit currency, and violence. That probe led to the ouster of Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko, who fled Ukraine in September after NABU reported that criminal group members bribed prosecutors, police officers, and Security Service officials.
Structural Flaws in Selection Panels
The bill seeks to re-introduce competitive selection procedures for top prosecutorial jobs, except for the prosecutor general. This reintroduction is an explicit European Union requirement for Ukraine’s accession talks. However, these competitive selection procedures were eliminated in 2025 under a controversial law that destroyed prosecutors’ procedural independence. While the clause on anti-corruption agencies was later annulled, the provisions regarding the prosecution service remained valid. Consequently, the new bill creates selection panels dominated by incumbent prosecutors through the Council of Prosecutors, the service’s self-governing body. Vitaly Shabunin, head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center’s executive board, quipped on Facebook: "And in response to (the Carthage case), we get a ‘sweeping reform of the Prosecutor’s Office.’" He argued that the bill entrenches corrupt elements rather than cleaning up the system because it includes no procedure for purging compromised prosecutors.
Ignoring International Standards
The legislation also envisages creating an Ethics Standards Council to check the integrity of candidates for the Council of Prosecutors and the Qualification and Disciplinary Commission. A majority of this council’s members will be prosecutors, ensuring internal control over vetting processes. Nor does the bill stipulate any contest for the position of prosecutor general. The EU has demanded a reform of Ukraine’s notoriously corrupt and politicized prosecution service, calling for a merit-based selection process for the top post. In June, Anastasia Radina, head of parliament’s anti-corruption committee from President Volodymyr Zelensky’s party, submitted a competing bill seeking a transparent contest with international experts. Authorities have refused to consider that alternative so far. This mirrors a similar controversy in September when the EU disbursed funds in exchange for what Ukrainian experts called a judicial "anti-reform." The judicial watchdog Dejure argued that the related integrity declarations law effectively dismantles accountability tools while making it easier for judges to evade responsibility for false statements.
