The Problems with Minsk and Corruption: How to Help Ukraine

On Wednesday, June 22, 2016 The McCain Institute, the Atlantic Council, Hudson Institute, and The American Interest hosted a discussion on how the West can help Ukraine overcome challenges from the Minsk agreement and corruption at the Atlantic Council headquarters.

Opening remarks provided by Mr. Charles Davidson, Publisher, The American Interest; Executive Director, Kleptocracy Initiative, Hudson Institute and Ambassador John Herbst, Director, Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council.

Should We Bury the Minsk Agreement? - Debate featuring, Mr. David Kramer, Senior Director for Human Rights and Democracy, The McCain Institute for International Leadership and Ambassador John Herbst, Director, Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council. Moderated by Ambassador Kurt Volker, Executive Director, The McCain Institute for International Leadership.

Fighting Corruption in Ukraine - Panel presentation featuring Mr. Charles Davidson, Publisher, The American Interest; Executive Director, Kleptocracy Initiative, Hudson Institute; Mr. Thomas Firestone, Partner, Baker & McKenzie LLP; Ms. Hannah Thoburn, Research Fellow, Hudson Institute; and Mr. Marius Laurinavičius, Senior Fellow-in-Residence, Center for European Policy Analysis. Moderated by Dr. Alina Polyakova, Deputy Director, Dinu Patriciu Eurasia Center, Atlantic Council.

Besieged by the Kremlin’s occupation of Crimea and ongoing aggression in the East, Ukraine is simultaneously weakened by a failure of the ruling elite to tackle corruption. Western leaders have also fallen short in providing vital military, diplomatic, or economic support. Practical anti-corruption measures have yet to be leveraged against Ukrainian figures, while sanctions against the kleptocratic Putin regime and its cronies remain tied to the flawed Minsk agreement.

Attacked by Putin, let down by their own leaders, and shortchanged by the West, the Ukrainian people have nevertheless continued to fight for a free, sovereign, and democratic future. On June 22, we hosted an expert debate on how the West can help Ukrainians emerge from one of their darkest hours.