Ukraine’s parliament passes law to streamline reforms of country’s customs
Source: Yaroslav Zheleznyak/Telegram
Ukraine’s Customs is in for a major overhaul after the Ukrainian parliament passed Bill No. 6490-d to update customs operations. The news came from Yaroslav Zheleznyak who praised the legislation after it received the votes of 260 Ukrainian MPs on Tuesday.
“This reform is a huge signal to the IMF, World Bank, the U.S., business associations, and the public. But most importantly, it’s the best thing we could do to boost revenue for the state budget,” Zheleznyak said in his post on social media.
The reform is expected to rake in at least 100 billion hryvnias in revenue over the next few years. One of the key features of the bill is about ‘transparent’ appointment of the head of the executive body responsible for customs policies. It will be handled by a selection committee to ensure top talent leads the charge.
The reform promises not just smoother customs operations but also a solid foundation for reducing corruption and easing the burden on businesses. The authors of the policy believe that new recruitment and service policies will help spur up Ukraine’s economic growth, and keep its customs operations efficient and transparent.
In my previous column, I wrote about social innovations in Ukraine. Those innovations are part of civic resilience and the democratization of security, which Europe is paying close attention to right now. The EU is trying to work out how to spread responsibility for its own security across society as a whole, rather than leaving it to institutions alone. It is looking for concrete ways to bring ordinary people into the work of defense and resistance.
Petro Poroshenko’s lawyers have appealed to the High Anti-Corruption Court demanding that NABU be obligated to register proceedings regarding the fact of exerting influence on the court and to recognize Petro Poroshenko as a victim in the case of the Deputy Head of the Office of the President, Iryna Mudra, due to her pressure on Supreme Court judges who were considering a lawsuit to overturn sanctions.
Internationally recognized brands and financial institutions should direct capital to Ukraine now, not waiting for the hostilities to end. This was emphasized by Rinat Akhmetov, president of FC Shakhtar, during a working visit to UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, where he met with UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin.
In recent days, Moscow’s official rhetoric has been dominated by hysteria over the decision of…
In 2025, the deadliest year yet for civilians, Ukraine’s three largest charitable foundations raised a record 105.9 billion hryvnias. It is more than the years 2022–2024 combined. According to the UN, humanitarian aid in Ukraine was delivered by more than 450 organisations, reaching five million people over the course of the year. Civic foundations hold licences to purchase lethal weapons, which is a function states have monopolised for centuries. These record sums were underwritten by international government grants, which means foreign states now channel billions directly through Ukrainian civic funds, bypassing inter-state channels. It is hard to imagine a stronger institutional trust in civil society.