REUTERS
If the Bureau's independence is put in jeopardy, the Fund reserves the right to reconsider any potential agreements for Ukraine.
The International Monetary Fund has warned Kyiv it will review its decisions on Ukraine if Parliament adopts amendments to the legislation expanding the range of grounds for the dismissal of a director of National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine.
That's according to a piece by European Pravda referring to a letter reportedly sent by head of the IMF representation in Ukraine, Ron van Rooden, to deputy heads of the Presidential Office Yulia Kovaliv and Andriy Smirnov.
Concerns are related to the parliamentary initiative to include "administrative corruption-related violation" to the list of grounds for the dismissal of NABU director (the court earlier brought incumbent director Artem Sytnyk to administrative responsibility over such violation).
The IMF believes that these changes will narrow the independence of the Bureau and thus require adjustments to new programs of the Fund's cooperation with Ukraine.
The publication notes that the legislative initiatives in question are laid down in the two bills submitted to Parliament in February-March.
Although none of the draft laws was submitted at President Volodymyr Zelensky's initiative, the Fund advises the President's Office to take action in the issue, since the adoption of such legislation would halt the implementation of the current IMF program, journalists explain.
Read alsoDraft resolution to dismiss NABU chief registered in Ukraine's parliament
The IMF warned the President's Office about the implications of such legislative amendments a week ago.
As UNIAN reported earlier, the Ministry of Finance expects that by the end of 2020, the International Monetary Fund will disburse two tranches to Ukraine worth a total of $3.5 billion under a new loan program.
UNIAN memo. Ukraine and the IMF in December 2019 reached a staff-level agreement on a new three-year Extended Fund Facility in the amount of $5.5 billion. The decision on the new program is yet to be approved by IMF Executive Board. The exact date for consideration of the Ukraine issue has not been scheduled since the country has not fulfilled all preliminary conditions for having a new program launched.