Articles :

Disastrously low ratings of all key players who will next year try to compete both for presidency and parliament seats are forcing them to feverishly seek allies and merge. But it remains unclear whether any of them will manage to find common ground and come up with a "single candidate".

The anniversary of the Maidan deadly shootings became another occasion to recall the impunity of murderers. Presidential testimony in the Yanukovych treason case was accompanied by excessive zeal by law enforcers. Law "On special aspects of state policy to ensure state sovereignty over the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine in Donetsk and Luhansk regions" came into force. Polls of presidential candidates by "Rating" pleased Yulia Tymoshenko. Rada Speaker Andriy Parubiy promised to enhance parliament's performance. Gennady Moskal did not choose words too carefully.

The Yanukovych trial was anticipated for these four long years only because everyone wished to hear the truth about how the Russian annexation of Crimea had actually taken place since high-ranking witnesses are likely to voice facts under oath rather than some speculations.

Mikheil Saakashvili's experience shows that the readmission deal between Ukraine and EU is fully functioning. NSDC Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov battled in court a rather confident group of Viktor Yanukovych lawyers in a high-profile treason case against the former president. The situation in Donbas remains complicated. Odesa Mayor Gennady Trukhanov is safely back in office despite an ongoing investigation of his alleged complicity in embezzlement.

Petro Poroshenko’s participation in the Vienna Ball sparked a harsh reaction in social networks. The overseas trip of dozens of parliamentarians to take part at a prayer breakfast in Washington complicated the operations of the Verkhovna Rada. PM Groysman tried on himself a toga of a constitutionalist. Mikheil Saakashvili lost the appeal for a refugee status. Ex-MP Oleksandr Shepelev returned to Ukraine rather unexpectedly. A number of politicians came up with a number of initiatives in the context of the presidential campaign. NABU Director Artem Sytnyk called his agency ineffective without an Anti-Corruption Court.

Ukraine’s prime minister promised "a spring of reform", while his Cabinet laid off fiscal chief Roman Nasirov. The prosecutor general while in Brussels spoke about anti-corruption efforts and while in Kyiv – about the reasons to rename "Boyko’s drilling rigs". The NSDC secretary announced the creation of cyber warfare units and successful tests of Ukrainian-made cruise missiles. The newly-created "National Squads" caused quite a stir in social media. Mikheil Saakashvili, whom the court earlier put on a curfew, resumed mass rallies of his supporters.

The Prosecutor General of Ukraine told UNIAN whether the PGO would be opening cases against Russian deputies and judges of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, whose actions led to the annexation of Crimea and Moscow’s subsequent aggression against Ukraine. He also spoke about the developments in the cases of Yanukovych allies Kurchenko, Klymenko and Stavytskiy, and whether the prosecutors withdrew tax evasion claims to Finance Minister Danyliuk.

Ukraine marked the 100th anniversary of the proclamation of independence and the 99th anniversary of the Unification Act. Popular ratings don’t let any contestants in the upcoming presidential race relax. The president suggested that the composition of the Central Election Commission be renewed, forcing Yulia Tymoshenko to cut her winter vacation. The Yanukovych treason trial continues. Reshuffles stroke several parties at a time.

The Verkhovna Rada this week adopted a law "On the special aspects of state policy to ensure state sovereignty over the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk regions." The prime minister believes that the average salary in 2018 will grow to UAH 10,000. The Prosecutor General reported to the Rada national security and defense committee on the Yanukovych assets seizure. Investigation journalists from Schemes TV show reported on the overseas vacation of the Ukrainian president.

When Ukrainian officials talk about possibilities for the country to join NATO, they mostly face criticism toward such an initiative. And this criticism is not unfounded as Ukraine has long lost its Membership Action Plan (MAP). However, Kyiv does have a key to NATO. It’s just that this key should be applied properly.

The further the discussions on the bill on the reintegration of Donbas go, the less understanding why it was at all necessary to submit the draft for the second reading in its current "finalized" form, especially if we take into account what risks it carries.

The national police said they apprehended the suspect in the murder of lawyer Iryna Nozdrovska. Petro Poroshenko met with Ukraine’s delegation to the Tripartite Contact Group in Minsk. PM Volodymyr Groysman focused on the economy. Mikheil Saakashvili is changing tactics. Ukraine is attacked by “exposing” fake news.

The murder of a Ukrainian lawyer Iryna Nozdrovska sparked public outrage. Mikheil Saakashvili resembles a stepson of Themis, which seriously limits the boundaries of his political activity. The behavior of representatives of the Moscow Patriarchate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Zaporizhia once again restarted the process of forming a separate Ukrainian Orthodox church. The government decision to impose a lower speed limit in populated areas has become a real test for the perception of transformations by Ukrainian society.

The situation in Donbas was the most determining factor of Ukraine’s life in 2017. The blockade of transport communication with the occupied parts of eastern Ukraine and the increase in the minimum wage became the main economic events. The confrontation between the government and the opposition last year largely remained within a civilized field, although Mikheil Saakashvili introduced new nuances into the political struggle. Losses-2017 have become a good illustration for overall situation in the country. "Autumn of reform" in the Verkhovna Rada was one of the year’s pleasant surprises. The anti-corruption component of social and political life turned out to be fairly hypertrophied. The Prosecutor General's Office charged Viktor Yanukovych with high treason and confiscated more than UAH 50 billion from his team. The state boosted its efforts to win minds of its citizens.

Head of the National Police of Ukraine Serhiy Knyazev in an interview with UNIAN told why protesters managed to erect tents on Hrushevskogo Street but failed to occupy the Zhovtnevy Palace, why current times should not be compared to 1990s, and whether Ukrainians should beware of a higher crime rate in 2018.

First Deputy Minister of Information Policy of Ukraine Emine Dzhaparova sat down with UNIAN, speaking of how the information space is being redrawn in Crimea for the sake of Russian propaganda, why the occupation forces accuse Crimean Tatars of extremism and terrorism, and what the horrors of the "Russian world" have to do with the repressions carried out by its adepts.

Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman summed up the government’s work this year against the backdrop of an espionage scandal. The Verkhovna Rada showed no rush with considering the Donbas reintegration bill amid the latest escalation on the ground. Ex-Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili slowed down the pace of his current political efforts in Ukraine. New public opinion polls put Yulia Tymoshenko on the top of presidential rating lists.

Mikheil Saakashvili went a path from a "war prisoner" in a courtroom to the one who led the crowd storming the Zhovtnevy Palace concert hall. Yulia Tymoshenko set a record, which she can hardly be proud of. Petro Poroshenko has launched the new Supreme Court. Volodymyr Groysman has sharply reduced his public presence after the Rada adopted the 2018 Budget. "Samopomich" party seems to be getting engaged in a presidential race.

The dynamics of political developments last week overshadowed the adoption of the State Budget for 2108. Mikheil Saakashvili was acting weird, constantly surprising the public and attracted general attention. Yuriy Lutsenko tried to prove financial participation of Ukraine’s fugitive tycoon Serhiy Kurchenko in Saakashvili's political activity. The attack by the leaders of coalition factions on NABU has choked but MP Yehor Sobolev was dismissed from the post of head of Rada’s anti-corruption committee. Ukraine’s rock star Svyatoslav Vakarchuk reminded of himself in a pre-election format.

Transcripts and audio obtained through wiretapping, made public on December 5 in the Verkhovna Rada session hall by Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko, delivered a hard blow not so much to their very target, Mikheil Saakashvili, but his associates and allies who have long been struggling against corruption and constant delays in required reforms. UNIAN asked some of them, how they reacted to the latest developments.