Biden Warns Ukraine That Corruption Imperils Its Democracy

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

December 8, 2015 — 8:51 AM EST


Ukraine must root out corruption and impose the rule of law or risk graft becoming the “death knell” of the eastern European nation’s democracy, according to U.S. Vice President Joe Biden.

Biden, visiting Kiev for the fourth time in two years, warned against repeating the broken reform promises of the 2004 Orange Revolution, which failed to curb the clout of the businessmen that control Ukraine’s biggest companies and influence politics. The government must complete economic overhauls under a $17.5 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund, he said.

“Oligarchs and non-oligarchs must play by the same rules,” Biden told lawmakers Tuesday in the Ukrainian capital before a vote this month on the 2016 budget. Fighting corruption is one of Ukraine’s “national security interests.”

Ukraine, jolted by a war in its easternmost regions and 1 1/2 years of recession, has faced criticism over delays in reforms needed to sustain the flow of financial aid from allies including the U.S and the European Union. Anger at corruption fueled the Orange Revolution and an uprising that unseated pro-Russian leader Viktor Yanukovych in 2014. Ukraine ranks 142nd-lowest of 175 nations in Berlin-based Transparency’s latest graft-perceptions survey.

Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-12-08/biden-warns-ukraine-that-corruption-imperils-its-democracy

[mtasselin]

1. Really

Really, Mr. Biden you don't have to go to the Ukraine and tell them that corruption is wrecking their democracy, look at America sir, we are being destroyed because of corruption at all levels. It starts in the white house pushing tpp and these other trade jokes and I can not call them agreements because they are not. To continue on how you supported the bankruptcy law where students can't claim bankruptcy for their student debt. To every government agency that is controlled by the industry that they are supposed to represent. So Mr. Biden let's clean our own house before we criticize someone else's.

[forest444]

3. K&R. Big time.

http://www.examiner.com/article/43-trillion-lawsuit-and-nyc-nanny-murders-linked

[navarth]

10. yeah there did seem to be a bit of irony there... nt

[forest444]

2. Not to mention Svoboda (Ukrainian Nazis).

Of course, they didn't seem to bother Mrs. Kagan when she was discussing the $5 billion U.S. taxpayers spent on the putsch and how best to hide the fact that Oleh Tyahnybok runs the show.

[Duckhunter935]

6. you mean the 5 billion

Over 20 plus years and the party the did not get over 5% of the vote to be represented in the Rada?

[forest444]

7. She never mentioned that it was "over 20+ years."

She did, on the other hand, specifically refer to the need to hide Tyahnybok's real influence by appointing relatively acceptable right-wing profitizers like Yatz.

We should take her at her word, then - especially since she didn't think the public could later hear her (the only time goons like the Kagans probably ever really say what's on their mind).

[Duckhunter935]

9. the fact checkers have debunked that crap

Yes 5 billion over more than 20 years from 1991 to present. Funny the only ones pushing that misinformation are from Putin's media outlets. Same thing with a coup, the previous president fled the country after even his own party voted to remove him. He was replaced with a caretaker president until free and fair elections were held, and they were and the present administration was elected.

[ladjf]

4. Biden needs to warn the U.S. about corruption. nt

[kjackson227]

5. I totally agree...

[Wilms]

8. Then recall Victoria Nuland Kagan.

[Phlem]

11. Just dripping with irony.

[pampango]

12. Transparency International had Ukraine at 26 (142nd in the world) in 2014.

Russia was at 27 or 136th in the world.

In the top 10 of the rankings were European countries along with New Zealand, Singapore and Canada. At the bottom were Somalia and North Korea. The US has improved a little under Obama and is at 17th in the world.

http://www.transparency.org/cpi2014/results