The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk took part in an event dedicated to the process of Ukraine's accession to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the OECD Anti-Bribery Convention.
In his speech, Ruslan Stefanchuk thanked the audience for the opportunity to discuss important issues in the field of anti-corruption. The Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament noted that amidst the ongoing war, Ukraine is extremely interested in developing business on the basis of honesty and transparency.
The Head of the Ukrainian Parliament noted that this summer the Parliament adopted significant legislative changes aimed at protecting businesses from unjustified criminal prosecutions, including the reboot of the Bureau of Economic Security. The next step is the customs reform.
Ruslan Stefanchuk emphasized that corruption is not limited to government agencies, but also extends to the private sector, where current criminal law measures are ineffective. He emphasized the need to change approaches to fighting corruption, in particular through the adoption of legislation that would meet the requirements of the OECD Convention.
“For the entire period of existence of this institution, which is more than 10 years, only a few guilty verdicts have been passed. Therefore, it is quite obvious that we need to change our approaches,” the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament stressed.
He reminded that in 1999, the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions came into force. “It obliged its signatories to criminalize bribery of foreign officials, establish liability of legal entities for international bribery and introduce effective proportionate sanctions,” said Ruslan Stefanchuk.
He also said that the Verkhovna Rada has recently been working closely with the OECD on a number of issues, including accession to the Convention. “I would like to remind you that the implementation of the relevant standards is also envisaged in the State Anti-Corruption Programme for the period up to 2025,” the Head of the Ukrainian Parliament stressed.
Ruslan Stefanchuk informed that this year a special parliamentary group on cooperation with the OECD was established, headed by the First Deputy Speaker, Mr Oleksandr Korniienko.
The Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament also noted the importance of the draft laws being developed in the committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, in particular draft laws № 10319 and № 11443. It is important to ensure that they meet the criteria for accession to the Convention, as well as to ensure the real effectiveness of the new rules.
Ruslan Stefanchuk called for joint work to improve the draft laws, including the efforts of the main Committee, OECD experts, anti-corruption bodies and the private sector.
“I hope that we will be able to adopt these laws by the end of the year. This will not only affect our membership in the OECD, but also our further negotiations with the EU,” said the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.