President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that he was focused on the issue of war, which is why he did not discuss the law on limiting the powers of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutorʼs Office (SAPO) No. 12414 in advance.
He said this during a meeting with journalists on July 24.
"Probably, we should have had a dialogue. We should always communicate. I am focused on the issue of war, because right now in Ukraine the number one issue is the issue of war. The most important problem is war. The main enemy is Russia," the president emphasized.
And he added that he respects the opinion of society and itʼs normal to react when people donʼt want something, when people donʼt like it — thatʼs why the authorities reacted.
The President believes that the Verkhovna Rada will vote for a new bill that will restore the independence of NABU and SAPO — he "wants this to happen".
Zelensky also explained why the new draft law, which is based on the basic principles of the independence of anti-corruption bodies, did not include a provision on urgent searches only through the judicial system — an idea proposed by business. The President replied that this was a good idea, but, according to him, “this provision stopped the entire law enforcement system — not only NABU, SAPO, it concerned all bodies”. That is why this clause was removed.
"We are in the same infrastructure with Europe, we want to be part of Europe. Nobody wants to risk anything [...]. As for NABU and SAPO, I told them that I will find a way out. I will offer my vision, based on what anti-corruption activists need and what society wants," Zelensky answered the question about whether there are risks to Ukraineʼs European integration due to the situation with NABU and SAPO.
According to him, the British Prime Minister said that aid will definitely not decrease. The partners understand that there are "issues" in Ukraine — and they are internal.
What is happening with NABU and SAPO?
On July 22, Volodymyr Zelensky signed Law No. 12414, which amends the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Among other things, the Prosecutor General will be granted the following powers:
- to take cases from NABU and entrust the investigation to other bodies;
- be the de facto head of SAPO and delegate the powers of the SAPO prosecutor to other prosecutors;
- provide the NABU detectives with mandatory written instructions;
- independently close cases on suspicion of top officials.
Amendments are also envisaged that will limit the activities of SAPO, namely:
- the SAPO prosecutors will not be able to determine NABUʼs jurisdiction in certain cases;
- the head of SAPO will not be able to resolve disputes about the subjectivity of investigation in cases that NABU can investigate;
- The head of SAPO will not have the authority to amend appeals and cassation complaints filed by the SAPO prosecutors.
NABU and SAPO emphasized that if the document is adopted, the head of SAPO will become a nominal figure, and NABU will lose its independence and turn into a unit of the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office. In Kyiv, Odesa, Lviv, and Dnipro, people took to the streets to protest against the bill, which continued the next day, July 23.
On July 24, at the initiative of Volodymyr Zelensky, the Verkhovna Rada registered draft law No. 13533 on "strengthening the powers" of NABU. The presidential draft law restores all procedural powers and guarantees of independence.
In parallel, the deputies registered their bill No. 13531. The day before, deputy Yaroslav Zheleznyak reported that the Verkhovna Rada went on a "break" until the 20th of August, but it is planned to convene next week for a vote, but the exact date is not yet known. According to him, they are still checking the votes "when it is maximally possible".
For more news and in-depth stories from Ukraine, please follow us on X.