Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is once again under fire for what critics call undemocratic behavior — this time for signing a law that weakens two of his country’s anti-corruption bodies.
BBC News reported, the new law gives Zelenskyy’s prosecutor general authority over both the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Critics say the law could allow Zelenskyy, who ran on an anti-corruption platform, to interfere with or shut down corruption probes.
Furious Ukrainians flooded the streets in multiple cities this week, staging large anti-government protests.
Office of President Zelensky now. The people of Ukraine demand @ZelenskyyUa to return back NOW independence of #NABU #SAPO pic.twitter.com/ATAC0XxNVJ
— Daria Kaleniuk (@dkaleniuk) July 23, 2025
BREAKING: Mass protests have erupted in Kyiv, Ukraine against President Volodymyr Zelensky.
This is the first known major protest against the Ukrainian leader.
Thousands of people have turned out in the streets of Kyiv to protest moves by Zelensky’s government to block… pic.twitter.com/lmyGobPgu5
— Kyle Becker (@kylenabecker) July 22, 2025
In Kyiv, demonstrators carried signs saying, “We chose Europe, not autocracy,” and “My father did not die for this.”
The BBC reported that protests also erupted in the cities of Lviv, Dnipro, and Odesa.
In remarks on Wednesday, Zelenskyy defended the reforms to NABU and SAP, both of which he said were being influenced by Russians.
Should Americans continue funding Ukraine in its war with Russia?
The country’s former foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba said of the new law, “[It’s a] bad day for Ukraine.”
European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said, the changes marked “a serious step back,” calling the anti-corruption bodies “essential” for Ukraine if it hopes to join the European Union.
The BBC reported that G7 ambassadors are also reaching out to Zelensky personally after being confounded by the move.
The European Commission warned Ukraine that its financial aid depends on progress in “transparency, judicial reform, and democratic governance.”
This is not the first time Zelenskyy has faced criticism over a perception that he is clinging to power.
Ukraine has not held a national election since March 2019.
Last year’s planned election was indefinitely suspended due to a declaration of wartime martial law following Russia’s 2022 invasion.
In February, President Donald Trump criticized Zelenskyy for refusing to put himself up for a vote and for not working toward a diplomatic solution to end the war with Russia.
“A Dictator without Elections, Zelenskyy better move fast or he is not going to have a Country left,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account.
The president added, “In the meantime, we are successfully negotiating an end to the War with Russia, something all admit only ‘TRUMP,’ and the Trump Administration, can do.”
The post followed a fiery exchange in the Oval Office, after which Trump asked Zelenskyy to leave and to come back when he was ready to negotiate and to end the war.
Democrats used their House majority in 2019 to impeach Trump over a phone call he had with Zelenskyy, one in which Trump asked Ukraine’s president to look into allegations of corruption.
Trump was later acquitted by the Senate.
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