Overview

• Parliament passed and Zelenskyy signed legislation on Tuesday that subordinated the National Anticorruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) to the Office of the General Prosecutor
• Thousands of Ukrainians demonstrated in Kyiv, Lviv, Odessa and Dnipro from Tuesday evening into Wednesday over fears that the agencies’ independence has been compromised
• EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos and German officials cautioned that stripping autonomy from key anti-corruption bodies jeopardizes Ukraine’s path to European Union membership
• Zelenskyy argues that the overhaul will eliminate Russian influence in corruption investigations and has summoned NABU and SAP leaders to formulate a unified anti-corruption strategy
• Ukraine’s delegation has departed for Istanbul to hold a third round of direct talks with Russia focused on prisoner exchanges rather than negotiating a ceasefire