The article was originally prepared for Mirror of the Week
For three decades, the people and authorities coexisted in seemingly parallel worlds. Ukrainians, of course, elected those who ruled them and sometimes even overthrew the authorities they elected. However, voter disappointment in the election results grew very quickly. Consequently, state institutions traditionally had low public support — as if the government was alien to the people, as if it was not their own, but always a colonial or occupying one.
It seemed that this distrust would never go away. But the war changed everything. Sociological surveys demonstrate a high level of public trust in the authorities for perhaps the first time. The highest approval rating has the President: 83%. About half of the citizens of Ukraine trust the Cabinet and the Verkhovna Rada.
The fundamental shift in public opinion had a significant reason: despite all the risks, unfavorable forecasts, and life-threatening dangers, the top leadership remained with its people at the beginning of the invasion and continued to act in unison with the whole country. Certainly, many decisions made by authorities, both during the period of preparation for a potential invasion and during the war, were and are far from ideal. They are justly criticized by the media, society does not accept them and hopes that the establishment will hear the feedback. No matter how hard the United News telethon works, the time of suppressing information is over, shattered with the Russian blitzkrieg of the last spring. Today, faults are recognized immediately, as soon as the authorities’ unwillingness to correct their mistakes prevents Ukraine from winning — over Russia and over themselves. For now, the balance between the external and, unfortunately, the internal front is still maintained. Corruption, incompetence, and nepotism continue to eat away at the country from within.
But the very fact that the authorities, the army, and ordinary Ukrainians managed to preserve the independence of the state suggests that we have a chance not just to win (what will constitute our victory is a subject for a separate discussion), but also to revive ourselves again. Despite all the efforts of the enemy, we are independent. And it is not only thanks to the heroism of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians on the battlefield but also due to the right and timely decisions made by authorities. Many such decisions were made during the war.
Immediate military response to the invasion: decision to use the Armed Forces, mobilization, martial law, and the launch of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief
On the morning of February 24, 2022, the regular troops of the Russian Federation elevated the war, which had already lasted eight years, to a new level: they started an open large-scale invasion. It was accompanied by massive missile strikes and enemy attempts to quickly reach the capital.
During those early hours and days, it was extremely important for the authorities to operate and make decisions. Therefore, the first achievement is that during the first day of the war, the President made three key decisions to defend the state. The first was to use the Armed Forces. The decree provided the army with a legal basis to conduct military operations.
The second was announcing a general mobilization, which allowed the army to enlist people and involve all the state resources in the defense. And finally, the third decision — the introduction of martial law. With it came the curfew, military administrations, and other measures and restrictions that ensure the functioning of the state in wartime. The President also made the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief one of the key instruments for discussing decisions about the war.
Subsequently, the Verkhovna Rada supported all these decisions, which fully launched the Ukrainian war machine. Now these decisions seem banal routine because martial law and mobilization are extended every few months. However, at that time it was important to demonstrate that the state could and would defend itself with all its forces and resources. Therefore, their symbolic value is even greater than the legal one.
It is a pity that these important and necessary decisions were not made in 2014.
Everything for the front: amendments to the government budget and defense spending from the government budget
At the outbreak of a large-scale invasion, defense expenditures for the Ministry of Defense whic provides funding for the Armed Forces were around 130 billing UAH. This amount only partially satisfied the army’s needs during low-intensity hostilities ongoing in Donbas. Naturally, it was far from enough to properly fund the tasks that the army faced since February 24, 2022.
For this reason, the government budget was amended twelve times throughout the last year. These changes typically involved the distribution of international financial aid and significant sums allocated to the security and defense sector. As a result, by the end of the year, these expenses increased to 920 billion hryvnias — seven times compared to the amount at the beginning of the year.
In the government budget 2023, the Cabinet also directed all available resources to defend the country. At first, the Ministry of Defense received about 760 billion UAH. After the amendments, the amount increased to 1.1 trillion UAH. The state channeled practically all its revenues toward defense.
Everyone to arms: national resistance and civilian participation in the war
Before the large-scale invasion, the Verkhovna Rada passed the Law on National Resistance. Its cornerstone is the idea of involving the entire population in the defense of the state. The law envisaged the creation of Territorial Defense Forces as a mass territorial reserve for the protection of their homes and homeland. It also regulates the issue of resistance movement, essentially a guerrilla movement in the occupied territories under the aegis of the Special Operations Forces. The law introduced preparation for national resistance, giving every Ukrainian the opportunity to acquire the skills required to defend themselves and their country.
After February 24, 2022, the Verkhovna Rada fully regulated the participation of civilians in the defense of the state. In particular, the law allowed citizens and foreigners during the war to receive firearms and ammunition and participate in repelling and restraining Russian aggression. Thus, every civilian got the chance to lawfully destroy the enemy without even being in military service. Many Ukrainians took advantage of this right and contributed to the defense of the state.
Economic dimension of war: personal and sectoral sanctions against Russia
Before the large-scale invasion, the state, represented by the President, attempted to counter Russian influences through personal sanctions. At that time, they were not always justified from a legal standpoint since they were applied against Ukrainian citizens, who should have instead been tried.
However, after February 24, sanctions became a fully justified tool for protecting national interests. The President resorts to using this tool almost every month. The state also shifted from personal to sectoral sanctions. They are now applied against entire sectors of the Russian economy in order to reduce hostile influences on the Ukrainian economy and inflict damage on the economy of the enemy.
So many sanctions were introduced during the war that the state had to somehow consolidate them and keep track of them. To this end, a unified sanctions portal and a state sanctions registry were launched.
Sanctions are one of the elements of countering Russian influence on the Ukrainian economy, financial system, and society.
Compensation for the destruction: confiscation of aggressor property
Another way to weaken the enemy is to deprive their companies and affiliated oligarchs of property in Ukraine. This step is logical in view of the scale of atrocities and devastations caused by Russia. Therefore, shortly after the start of the invasion, the Verkhovna Rada regulated the principles of seizing Russian property in Ukraine.
Thanks to these innovations, Ukraine got the opportunity to forcibly seize the property of the Russian Federation without any compensation for its value. The law also gives the right to hold the Russian Federation accountable, including the right to claim damages caused by the war and recover compensation for these damages.
In essence, the adopted law aims to neutralize the economic influence on Ukraine that Russia consciously and systematically exerted for decades and often used as a means of aggression against Ukraine.
Farewell to the Russian church: eviction from the main temples and transition to a new calendar
Modern Russia does not neglect any means to destroy Ukraine. Therefore, it managed to combine the Soviet cult of World War II with propaganda through religion thanks to the widespread distribution in Ukraine of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
Therefore, it is not surprising that the state is forced to defend itself from the enemy in the religious arena as well. To do this, the authorities took several steps to break the link between Ukrainian society and the Russian church.
Firstly, in March 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers declared void the order allowing the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate to use the complex of buildings and structures of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra (men’s monastery) free of charge. With this decision, the UOC of the Moscow Patriarchate was removed from the use of the buildings of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra. This decision, besides practical consequences, has also symbolic significance.
Secondly, in June of this year, the President initiated the change in the dates of three religious holidays. The law set the date of Christmas on December 25 and moved the dates of Ukrainian Statehood Day from July 28 to July 15 and Defender’s Day from October 14 to October 1. As a result, Ukraine departed from the tradition widespread in Russia to celebrate religious holidays according to the Julian calendar.
Not a shared history: a new date to celebrate the Day of Remembrance and Victory in World War II
Russian influence on the Ukrainian state was not only financial and economic. No less important were immaterial influences. In particular, the distorted interpretation of shared pages of the past, especially concerning the interpretation of events of World War II, which are one of the pillars of the modern Russian imperial cult. Speculating on this topic, Russia traditionally tried to inflame internal conflicts within Ukraine.
Therefore, it is only natural that in May 2023, the Verkhovna Rada supported the initiative of the President to move the Day of Remembrance and Victory over Nazism in World War II 1939-1945 from May 9 to May 8. This decision contributed to the departure from the Russian point of view on World War II. It also contributes to the consolidation of the European tradition of celebrating the end of World War II.
Ultimately, it focuses the public attention on the human dimension of war — on grief and loss that has ruined the life of an entire generation — and not on the greatness of one totalitarian empire that won over another totalitarian empire. Such an approach corresponds to the modern humanistic view of history and honors the memory of those events much more sincerely than the gloss of parades on Red Square.
Helping our people: supporting IDPs and residents of liberated communities
After the large-scale invasion started, the Cabinet tried to mitigate the war-induced humanitarian crisis and satisfy the needs of internally displaced persons (IDPs). In particular, it passed several resolutions to assist people who were forced to leave their homes. That included the accommodation aid for IDPs: 3000 UAH for persons with disabilities and children, and 2000 UAH for other IDPs. The Cabinet also implemented a system to verify these payments to ensure they are received by those who genuinely need them most.
Additionally, the Cabinet decided to encourage citizens to provide their housing as shelter for internally displaced persons and introduced incentives for households hosting new residents. With the active participation of local communities that welcome IDPs, these measures have helped to provide nearly all those in need with temporary accommodation.
Also, financial aid is provided to evacuated persons and residents of liberated territories. Its size is the same as for the IDPs. Accompanied by humanitarian aid, it meets the needs of the population that has been affected by war and occupation, demonstrating that the state will leave no one behind.
Moving towards the EU: European integration laws
Breaking ties with Russia will never be complete without the full transformation of Ukraine into a Western nation. Joining the EU is a prerequisite for achieving this strategic national goal. The war has created an opportunity to take the next step towards it. The European Council at the summit in Brussels on June 23, 2022, granted Ukraine the status of a candidate for the European Union membership, conditional that a number of reforms would be implemented.
To move further, Ukraine had to adopt a package of European integration laws and decisions, including:
- Constitutional Court reform
- continuation of the judicial reform
- continuation of decentralization
- fight against corruption, including the appointment of the Head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office
- fight against money laundering
- implementation of the anti-oligarch law
- harmonization of the audiovisual legislation with the European standards
- amendments to legislation on national minorities.
Ukrainian authorities have met all these requirements, although problems with some of these laws still exist. Thus, there are few formal obstacles left for joining the EU. What comes next depends on the politicians of Ukraine and the European Union.
Path to NATO: memorandum on deepening cooperation and fulfilling obligations
Naturally, in addition to economic integration into Western structures, Ukrainian authorities are keen to be under a common security umbrella — to become a member of NATO. In November 2022, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a Memorandum on deepening cooperation with NATO. It declares the implementation of modern communication, data processing, and troop management technologies in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It also aims to help the Armed Forces achieve compatibility with NATO armies in terms of communication and information systems.
However, joining NATO is a purely political matter. Its resolution will directly depend on the results of the war and our understanding that the practice of taking on obligations and then delaying or breaking them will now be disastrous and should be ruled out in order to strengthen mutual trust with partners.
…Ukraine is on the edge of the abyss, heroically resisting Russian aggression with the help of its partners. Every independent day of our state is paid for by the blood of ordinary people.
However, the outcome of the war for independence will also depend on the extent to which the authorities will be ready to make five, ten, or more key decisions to defeat corruption, eliminate incompetence in public administration, and cleanse positions from cronies. This will make joining the EU a reality, not an empty dream.