Although there is no clear indication of when the war may end, Ukrainians are ready for sacrifice. Still, they also want to make sure that their society becomes more resilient and corruption-proof, writes Roman Rukomeda.

Today is the 446th day of open massive Russian military aggression against Ukraine. On the battlefield, the Russian aggressors have lost the initiative they had during their “winter offensive campaign” in the East of Ukraine.

The crucial town during this campaign was Bakhmut in the Donetsk region, defended for a year by the Ukrainian army. Now the more significant part of this town is captured by Russian invaders, and the town itself is almost destroyed.

However, Russian terrorists have lost their edge even in Bakhmut, where the Ukrainian army started to recapture the town in a succession of successful counter-attacks. At the same time, the Ukrainian military is successfully destroying tens of Russian artillery and multiple rocket launch systems each day, together with command centres and ammo warehouses. So, the key targets now are Russian logistics and command officers, together with long-range artillery and anti-aircraft systems.

Observing the activities on the front line, we can assume that the preparation for the Ukrainian offensive is ongoing. However, fortified Crimea may not be a hard nut to crack after the set of preparatory actions, including the destruction of the Crimean Bridge.

Another interesting issue is the evolution and development of the Ukrainian mil-tech or military industry. The state company, Ukroboronprom, finally started in March 2023 a process of official corporatisation. This trend is positive as it is directed towards a more transparent company with fewer corruption risks and creating appropriate conditions for cooperation with foreign investors.

The Ukrainian public administration is getting used to operating in war conditions. Now there are sensitive problems with the reduced salaries of civil servants and the removal of state apparatus, resulting in losses of good specialists leaving public administration. The Ukrainian government will try to optimise the future state machine by speeding up the e-government. It is a real revolution for the Ukrainian public administration.

Ukraine cannot afford to lose critical institutions during the reform process. One such institution is the National Agency for Civil Service, the central pillar for transforming civil service in line with European and NATO integration.

Ukraine’s society is also accustomed to living in war conditions without indicating when it will end. According to the surveys, most people believe war might last another year or even longer.

According to a new survey conducted by the Razumkov Center, about 53% of people in Ukraine consider corrupt officials as their main internal enemies. In the second position, with 47%, are the Russian agents in Ukrainian state institutions and the security sector. The third category of perceived internal enemies are the politicians and propagandists appealing to the “Russian world” and friendship with Russia despite all their crimes and destructions in Ukraine.