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BRUSSELS The Council of the European Union announced on July 15 that Ukraine has been added to its list of countries it believes no longer require certain travel restrictions. Member states of the EU use those recommendations to decide whether to impose COVID-19-related travel restrictions.

Despite an agreement by which Ukrainians can enter European Union countries without needing a visa, entry from Ukraine to the EU had previously been restricted since March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Following a review in line with the recommendation to phase out temporary restrictions on non-essential travel to the EU, the EU Council has updated the list of countries for which travel restrictions should be lifted. In particular, Rwanda and Thailand have been removed, and Ukraine has been added [to this list], the press service of the Council of the European Union reported on July 15.

Based on the criteria and conditions set out in the recommendation, member states can gradually remove restrictions on travel at external borders for residents of the listed countries, including Ukraine. In total, the EUs green list includes 23 countries for which it recommends that entry restrictions be lifted.

The EU councils recommendation does not automatically give people from Ukraine permission to enter EU countries, and member states can still impose their own entry restrictions.

Several EU countries had already allowed entry from Ukraine, though individuals needed to meet certain COVID-19 preconditions.

I welcome the EU decision recommending the resumption of visa-free travel with Ukraine. It shows that the epidemic situation in Ukraine meets EU requirements, said Ukraines Foreign Affairs Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

These are new opportunities for Ukrainians to travel this summer and this is an important signal to countries that the incidence of COVID-19 in Ukraine has significantly decreased and our state is responding appropriately to the challenges of the pandemic, Mr. Kuleba said.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs nonetheless recommends that Ukrainians check current travel information before travelling to EU member countries.

Most European countries allow non-essential entry for Ukrainians who have received a full dose of an EU-approved COVID-19 vaccine. The EU list of approved vaccines does not include the CoronaVac vaccine produced by Chinese manufacturer Sinovac, which is widely distributed in Ukraine. As a result, many Ukrainians cannot enter the EU. They are, therefore, likely to wait for vaccines produced by Pfizer or Moderna, which are approved by EU member states.

Ukraines Health Minister, Viktor Lyashko, said that the World Health Organization has approved the use of all vaccines offered in the country and he urged Ukrainians not to choose between vaccines because the best vaccine is the one that has been introduced into the body and is already working.

Mr. Lyashko said that he believes the European Union will soon allow people who have been given the CoronaVac vaccine to enter the EU.

I have communicated with the European Regional Director of the WHO office and colleagues in the European Commission. Soon, the EMA [the EU regulator of medications] will add CoronaVac to its list of approved vaccines, Mr. Lyashko said.

With each EU country implementing its own entry rules, Ukrainians likely will require a negative PCR test to enter the European Union. Border guards may require a negative test conducted no more than 48 or 72 hours before departure. In some cases, only a completed vaccination together with a negative PCR test will be sufficient for a border guard to allow entry.

However, Albania, Northern Macedonia and Montenegro do not require a test and allow entry from Ukraine without COVID-19-related documentation.

A correspondent for The Weekly entered Spain a week before the EU moved Ukraine to its green list. Together with an online form required by the Spanish government, a vaccination certificate was all this correspondent needed to board a flight from Kyiv to Barcelona.

Despite different entry requirements, Ukrainians can enter one EU country and cross borders to another country regardless of travel restrictions in the country of entry. The Weeklys correspondent crossed borders between Spain and France, France and Belgium, Belgium and Germany without a single document check. Direct access to France from Ukraine was possible only under limited conditions, and Belgium prohibited all Ukrainians from direct entry.

Meanwhile, on July 21 Ukraine began a new phase in its effort to vaccinate its population of some 41 million people. Now all categories of citizens, regardless of age and profession, are eligible to receive a vaccine.

Groups such as doctors, educators, social workers, the military, the elderly and people with concurrent illnesses remain a priority for the government, said Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal during a meeting of the government.

People in those groups remain a priority because they are in the zone of highest risk and most vulnerable to COVID-19. They will continue to be given priority in immunization, Mr. Shmyhal said.

The prime minister noted that, to date, almost 4.3 million vaccinations have been administered in Ukraine. Nearly 2.8 million Ukrainians have received their first shot of vaccine, and 1.5 million have received their second dose. Ukraine has planned to deliver 13 million doses of the vaccine by the end of the summer, according to the government.

The National Academy of Sciences recently published a report noting that, while the number of cases of COVID-19 has declined in Ukraine, there is a danger of an explosive rate of further growth as a result of new strains that are now prevalent in other parts of the world.

It is worrying that three key epidemic indicators have risen in the last week, which we believe reflect current epidemic dynamics: the number of positive PCR tests, new hospitalizations and new reported cases, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine said in their report.

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EU includes Ukraine on its 'green zone' list - The Ukrainian Weekly

UC at the Olympics by the numbers

UC-affiliated athletes: 110Nations represented: 29Sporting events: 18Coaches, doctors staff: 20

Click here to jump to our UC Olympian roster, including coaches and staff.

Theyve had to wait an agonizingly long time to get to Tokyo, but for 110 UC athletes, Friday, July 23, marks a moment many of them have been dreaming of for a lifetime.

For some, this is the first chance to perform on such a massive stage. For others, its a hard-fought return to the spotlight. For UC, its a moment to celebrate: 130 athletes, coaches, physicians and staff from seven campuses are attending the Summer Games, representing 29 countries in 18 sports. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, they wont be able to hear friends and family cheering from the stands but there will be no such restrictions on cheering ardently at home. Win or lose, they are already Olympians and exemplify the Olympic credo: "The important thing in life is not the triumph, but the fight; the essential thing is not to have won, but to have fought well."

Here are a handful of storylines to watch in a few of the events featuring UC students, staff and alums. A full roster of UC athletes, coaches and staff is available below.

UC Berkeley has one of the most prolific swimming programs in the country, and it shows no less than 16 swimmers will be representing eight countries at the 2020 Games! Most of these swimmers are new to the Olympic pool, but three members of the UC Berkeley contingent that brought home an astounding 19 medals in 2016 (all for Team USA) will return for another lap in Tokyo.

Ryan Murphy, already a three-time gold medalist, is now a captain for Team USA swimming and will be defending his Olympic titles in the 100-meter and 200-meter backstroke. Already part of an elite group of swimmers that have qualified for events in two consecutive Olympics, Murphy will exceed all-time great Aaron Piersol if he can repeat in both events.

Teammate Tom Shields, a 2016 Rio gold medalist in the 400-meter medley relay, is also returning, this time to swim the 100-meter butterfly. Shields presence at these Games is itself a victory in late 2018, Shields attempted suicide, surviving thanks to his wife, Gianna. He has since begun speaking openly about his struggles with depression and mental healthin the hopes of helping others. His surprise qualification in the 100-meter butterfly event is a credit to his remarkable resiliency.

Abbey Weitzeil was only a freshman when she won a gold medal in the 400-meter medley and a silver in the 400-meter relay back in Rio. Now an alum, she will be competing in a slew of events, showcasing the freestyle skills she hopes will earn her an individual gold in the 50- or 100-meter events.

Olympic newbies include Katie McLaughlin, who lost out on a chance to qualify for the last Summer Games due to a freak injury. She will make her debut in the womens 4x200 free relay, expected to be a fevered race against Australia for gold. She talks about how much it means to make the team below:

At poolside, look for our two UC Berkeley swimming head coaches: UC Irvine alum David Durden, now head coach of the U.S. Olympic mens swim teamfollowing his success as assistant coach in the Rio Games; and assistant coach Teri McKeever, the first-ever female head coach for the U.S. womens Olympic team in 2012 who will be coaching again in 2020, this time as an assistant to Team USA.

You can be whoever you want to be is exemplified by Izzy Connor, the 21-year-old who is now the first UC Santa Cruz athlete to ever compete in the Olympic Games. Go Banana Slugs! Connor is not only part of Team USAs five-member rhythmic gymnastics group; she is also an incoming freshman who intends to study astrophysics and pursue writing, particularly about issues close to her, like anxiety, which she compares to a physical injury that needs work to heal.

I strongly believe you dont fully start to know yourself or grow as a person until youve gone through something that breaks you, Connor said of her struggles. Thats when you start to grow and progress as a person.

Her passion for the event compelled her to stick with it and now she will get to show the world the artistry of her sport as a result. I went through my career setting small goals fueled by the love I have for what I do, Connor wrote on Instagram, and suddenly looked up and found myself at the doorstep of the Olympics.

Led by the otherworldly Simone Biles, U.S. womens gymnastics touches down in Tokyo with one burning question: Can they win a third consecutive team gold? If so, they will join the storied company of the Fierce Five, the 2012 squad featuring UCLA gymnast Kyla Ross, and the Final Five, the 2016 squad featuring UCLA gymnast Madison Kocian. The womens first competition is July 25, but they already have one thing in common with these earlier teams: drawing from the incredible talent pool of UCLA gymnastics. Incoming freshman Jordan Chiles secured her place on the squad with top 3 performances in multiple events at the Olympic trials, while fellow incoming freshman Emma Malabuyo clinched a spot as an alternate. UCLA gymnasts will compete for other teams as well: incoming freshman Brooklyn Moors will represent Team Canada and alum Danusia Francis will represent Jamaica. At least one UCLA gymnast has competed at every Olympics since 1984.

While the UCLA gymnastics program often grabs the headlines (even in non-Olympic years, as Kaitlyn Ohashi and Nia Dennis show), they arent the only UC representatives in Tokyo. Charlotte Drury, a UC Irvine 2021 grad, is Team USAs second alternate in trampoline, and Dr. Marcia Faustin, of UC Davis, will be on the sidelines as co-head team physician for the U.S. women to help get them back on their feet, should they need it.

Womens soccer with players from UCLA and UC Berkeley kicked off the competition on July 21, even before the opening ceremony. Unfortunately, the U.S. womens team had their first defeat since 2019, snapping a 44-game winning streak against their nemesis, Sweden. Ouch.

But nobodys giving up just yet. The U.S. women can still advance from their group with strong showings against Australia and New Zealand. UC Berkeleys Alex Morgan will look to recapture the winning formula in those upcoming matches with her fellow UC alums in the starting 11, UCLAs Samantha Mewis and Abby Dahlkemper. But they will have their hands full facing Teagan Micah of Australia (UCLA) and Daisy Cleverley and Betsy Hassett of New Zealand (UC Berkeley) in their remaining group matches. If they succeed, Team Canada, featuring UCLA alum Jessie Fleming, may await them on the other side.

Could UCLAs Jrue Holiday have a better summer? On Tuesday, he helped deliver the first NBA championship in 50 years to the city of Milwaukee as the Bucks starting point guard. On Friday, hewill board a plane with teammate Khris Middleton and NBAfinals foe Devin Booker to try and nab a 16th Olympic mens basketball gold for the United States. In Tokyo, he will meet up with fellow UCLA alumZach LaVine (Kevin Love pulled out from injury). The two never shared a court together at UCLA, so fans of the campus storied basketball program are in for a treat.

While they wont meet him in a preliminary game, the UCLA duo could meet UC Davis Hugh Watanabe (as an Aggiehe competed under thesurname Hogland) when he plays for Japan in a knockout game. Watanabe holds dual citizenship with the U.S. and Japan, and the opportunity to play for one of his home countries, at home, will undoubtedly be special. The UCLA duo could also face off against UC Santa Barbara alum Gabe Vincent, the Nigerian guard who plays for the Miami Heat. Given that the U.S. men were recently stunned in an exhibition loss to Nigeria, it may or may not be an appetizing prospect for them. John Rillie, assistant coach for the UC Santa Barbara mens basketball team, will be helping coach the Australian mens team, who also shocked the U.S. in an exhibition game in the lead up to the Olympics. An ill portent, or an opportunity for revenge?

ThreeUCLA women will also be playing basketball in Tokyo; they are Nirra Fields for Canada, Atonye Nyingifa for Nigeria and Angela Dugali for Serbia. The U.S. typically dominates the event, but Canada could surprise Fields already has golds from the Pan American Games in 2015 and the FIBA Women's AmeriCup in 2017 to prove it.

UC Irvine water polo head coach Dan Klatt is hoping to help his team cement their place in history in Tokyo. An assistant coach for the past two gold medal-winning womens teams, he is working alongside UC Berkeleys Chris Oeding and under UCLA alum and head water polo coach Adam Krikorian to try to steer them to a third. Establishing dominance in any sport is hard, but luckily for Klatt, four of his assistant coaches at Irvine will be going for gold in the pool: Jamie Neushul, Melissa Seidemann, Alys Williams and Kaleigh Gilchrist. Gilchrist scored six goals on the way to her first medal in Rio; she and Seidemann, who scored three goals in Rio, can show the newbies the ropes. If Seidemann and Klatt can make it to the top of the podium again it will be an extraordinary moment for both of them; Seidemann has competed in the pool in every Olympics Klatt has coached.

Check out our list of Olympic athletes, coaches and staff below to learn more about who is in Tokyo. Names underlined have links to profile pages where more information is provided.

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UC Olympians on a quest for gold at the Tokyo Summer Games - University of California

1994 felt like a world away. Nigeria had left the USA as heroes, with neutral adoration from all over the globe. Now they were back in the States - but the excitement around the Super Eagles had all but vanished.

It was the 1996 Olympic group stage and like so many defences to come, Nigeria had no idea how to deal with Ronaldo. He'd just drift. From the left wing to the right, back to the centre. Do you follow? Leave him? It was barely the performance of a striker: he was playing three roles, swinging across the frontline like a pendulum. Or was that... Ronaldinho?

In the presence of Ronaldo Guiaro, Il Fenomeno - who'd sign for Barcelona that summer - took the moniker "Ronaldinho" upon his back. He had the flair of his temporary namesake but he tore through Hungary and left the Super Eagles breathless with the coldness he'd become famous for. On 30 minutes, 21-year-old Sunday Oliseh would try and restrain the Brazilian sensation, only for him to literally shrug him off and bullet the ball into the bottom corner. Ronaldo was unplayable. You heard it here, first.

It was an evening of a cat toying with a mouse and it summed up a mood. It was tiring to watch: it was tiring to be a Nigerian defender. They were not having fun at the Olympics.

The attention was on this exciting, young Brazil side; on the United States' chances of winning gold in both the men's and women's event; on how good Argentina and Portugal's future sides could both be, with glistening youngsters brought along to blood in Atlanta. The Super Eagles were not fancied. They had other concerns. They had no money for transport, with the players having to spend their own money on buses. In a vile low point, hotel staff refused to launder the team's jerseys because of stories of AIDS, according to Victor Ikpeba.

We had quarrels in-camp, goalkeeper Joseph Dosu concurred. Some of our players were coming and going like Nwankwo Kanu who was trying to get his contract sorted at Inter Milan and Tijani Babangida flying back and forth to make sure he got his contract with Ajax sealed.

Nigeria looked like a divided house: especially so when they amusingly split up and sat next to the Hungarian players during mealtimes in the hotel, in an attempt to intimidate their opponents. Manager Jo Bonfrere had already quit over unpaid wage and was tempted back into the fold by players. It looked like an iffy decision: Brazil's 1-0 Ronaldo-inspired victory had seemingly put Nigeria in their place. They qualified for the next round - but on goal difference.

The Super Eagles galvanised. They had young talent amidst their ranks and players who would grow into leaders; titans of top sides. They called on individual talent in the next round: they could afford that, at the very least. This was a golden generation before the cliche got tossed around; a side of Jay-Jay Okocha, Taribo West, Celestine Babayaro, Oliseh and Kanu. Despite boasting the mercurial Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Mexico surely didn't stand a chance?

Okocha stepped up, channeling divine inspiration. His touch was velvet, his control devastatingly simplistic and 20 minutes into the game, he cushioned a wayward cross on his chest, before rocketing the ball past Jorge Campos. When Nigeria got a second to settle it six minutes from time, courtesy of a back-flipping Babayaro, all the off-field drama - Ikpeba having to drive a team bus and Kanu popping out to phone Milan - seemed to dissipate.

The semi-finals were a big deal for an African nation - even if this was youth level football. This was at a time, of course, when only Cameroon had won a knockout game in a World Cup - six years prior, in Italy. Nigeria had arrived at this tournament with expectations at rock bottom and now they were in the final four. Likeable, impressively able to switch off background noise... but could Nigeria actually progress much further? Unlikely.

Fittingly for an Olympic Games, Athens was the scene of a date with destiny (though Georgia, not Greece), as Nigeria met Brazil once more. It was hard to predict anything other than "same again": Ronaldo was still possessed, scoring two to bury Ghana in the previous round, as Brazil struck four. When Flavio Conceicao put the Selecao into a lead a minute into the game, it looked like another tiring afternoon.

But the Nigerians never stopped fighting. A young Roberto Carlos would turn the ball into his own net for an equaliser, only for Bebeto and Conceicao once more to give Brazil a 3-1 lead into the break. Again, the Super Eagles fought back: temporary bus driver and substitute forward Ikpeba gave them hope with 12 minutes to spare, before Kanu equalised at the death. Four minutes into extra-time, he'd strike again, capitalising on a defensive calamity and calmly looping the ball over Dida, who dived too early.

It was the shock of the tournament: and it was entirely deserved. It felt surreal - and it fixed fractures.

Football is the one thing in Nigeria that brings us together, an emotional Okocha said after the game. For the people back in my country, this is maybe the happiest day of their lives.

With the Super Eagles on a high, Argentina awaited in the final. Finally, the feeling of 1994 was back.

But so were a few players who had beaten them two years ago - one of them being Diego Simeone in midfield. Nigeria would come to develop a weird rivalry with Argentina: they've faced them in four World Cups since '94. The generation changes. The result - still - hasn't.

That afternoon in Athens in 1996, however, saw a seesaw match that no World Cup would ever witness between the odd couple. Again, Nigeria went behind early, equalising through Babayaro before Hernan Crespo dispatched a contentious penalty to put Argentina a goal up once more. Just as he'd done against Brazil, Bonfrere looked to his bench, as Wilson Oruma and Emmanuel Amunike came on.

The Super Eagles were coming alive late on in games. As if on cue, 16 minutes from time, Daniel Amokachi found the answer, lobbing Pablo Cavallero for a leveller. The energy completely changed, as Argentina collectively sighed after twice letting a lead slip. This was becoming a habit for Nigeria, who pressed for a winner. That spirit of '94, of wanting to dominate, to drag the game to their opponents, hadn't left them: especially not with Olympic gold on the line. In the 90th minute, Amunike won a free-kick. The unthinkable happened for Argentina.

Like an unchoreographed line-dance troupe, the Albiceleste backline rose, trying to play Amunike offside. Roberto Sensini didn't move with the rest of the defence: the result was that the ball landed squarely at Amunike's feet. Time stood still for him to take a free shot at Cavallero, about 10 yards out. The Argentinians protested before the ball even hit the back of the net: but it was futile. Nigeria were Olympic champions.

Every one of those young gentlemen - even the three older stars - turned to precious metal at the final whistle. Immortalised in a country's national narrative; 18 pillars of sporting triumph. Try telling anyone from Nigeria that football at the Olympics doesn't matter, these days.

The win over Argentina that day became folklore back home, paving the way for successes from other African sides on the world stage and igniting the careers of future superstars. Sunday Oliseh called it the greatest moment in the Super Eagles' history - he was just 21 and would play for Ajax and Dortmund. Jay-Jay Okocha would become an icon transcendent of Nigerian football - but this moment was perhaps his proudest achievement, too. Kanu achieved greatness across Europe: but he was made in North America.

And despite the struggles that Nigeria endured, in the end, they didn't just rely on the individual brilliance of players that the nation would come to hold on its shoulders. There was grit in there. Because while the 1994 dazzled with their confidence, the class of 1996 dug in. This was a team who was never beaten. A team couldn't concede an inch to - especially in the final 15 minutes of games.

Argentina is good, Kanu said after the match. Nigeria is gold. And so was every member of that legendary side.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin wrote in his article that Russia is "open to dialogue with Ukraine and ready to discuss the most complex issues," but in reality, this is not the case.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, Charg d'Affaires, a.i. Courtney Austrian at the U.S. Mission to the OSCE said this at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council.

"President Putin wrote Russia was 'open to dialogue with Ukraine and ready to discuss the most complex issues.' We regret Mr. Putin's alleged promise of open dialogue has yet to be demonstrated in reality," she said, commenting on Putin's article about Ukraine.

According to Austrian, what everyone has witnessed is "Russian obstructionism in the Trilateral Contact Group" and "its lack of transparency and deliberate peddling of disinformation at international bodies, including the OSCE."

In general, Putin's article on Ukraine contains "untruthful characterizations and assertions, calculated to provoke" and seeks "to undermine Ukraine's sovereignty and dismiss the right of the Ukrainian people to chart their own political future," Austrian said.

She also said that last week the Russian ambassador again tried to obfuscate his nation's responsibility in the conflict by claiming Ukraine has not adhered to the Minsk agreements. "He failed to recall that seven years ago in Minsk, President Putin promised the war would end, all troops would be withdrawn, and all prisoners would be released. Russia has so far not fulfilled its promise, and we continue to call on Russia to end the war it started in eastern Ukraine," Austrian said.

Commenting on Putin's piece that Russia "respect[s] the Ukrainians' desire to see their country free, safe, and prosperous," Austrian said that Putin was well aware "that aspiration cannot be fully realized as long as Russia-led forces continue to wreak havoc in the Donbas and occupy Crimea." "Indeed, the whole aim of the Kremlin's aggression in Ukraine is thwarting Ukraine's aspirations," the U.S. diplomat said.

She added that if Russia wishes to be seen as a partner, "Russia needs to act responsibly and fulfill its promises." "Under the Minsk agreements Russia committed to recalling its forces and equipment from eastern Ukraine," she said.

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Putin says open to dialogue with Ukraine, but in reality this is not the case U.S. Mission to OSCE - Ukrinform. Ukraine and world news

Ukraine took a potential landmark step toward judicial reform in mid-July when members of parliament adopted two laws that should establish credible foundations for the reboot of the countrys legal system. On July 13, the Ukrainian parliament backed legislation to relaunch the deeply compromised High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) and the High Council of Justice (HCJ). Crucially, independent international experts will participate in the envisaged future selection process.

For the past seven years, Ukraines flawed judicial system has been the Achilles heel of the countrys reform efforts. Since the 2014 Euro-Maidan revolution, Ukraine has achieved progress in a range of reform areas including government procurement, corporate governance, banking industry transparency and the fight against corruption.

However, the dysfunctional Ukrainian court system has hung over this entire reform process like a sword of Damocles, threatening to reverse anti-corruption gains and undermine Ukraines Euro-Atlantic aspirations.

In addition to damaging the countrys reform efforts, this has resulted in significant economic costs. Ukraines inability to provide genuine rule of law reform has served to stunt GDP growth and scare away potential international investors who might otherwise have entered the Ukrainian market.

Ukraines judiciary is governed by two bodies. The HCJ is the main body in the system of judicial governance of Ukraine. It has full control over the appointment and dismissal of Ukrainian judges. Key responsibilities include protecting judges from unlawful interference by other agencies and holding judges accountable for professional misconduct, including the granting of permission to pursue criminal prosecutions against individual judges.

The HQCJ is often referred to as the human resources department for the Ukrainian judiciary. It is responsible for the selection of future judges and it vets current judges who do not meet professionalism and integrity criteria during re-attestation processes.Both of these bodies have long been seen as under the sway of existing interest groups within the judiciary. Instead of cleansing the judiciary of tainted judges, they stand accused of providing cover for them and successfully blocking all prior attempts to overhaul the Ukrainian court system.

Between 2014 and 2019, the HCJ and the HQCJ stand accused of securing the appointment of politically controlled and dependent judges to Ukraines new Supreme Court. Critics also say the two bodies failed to remove judges who persecuted protesters during the Euro-Maidan, and did not act against judges caught making false statements in their asset declarations. Meanwhile, the HCJ was involved in efforts to cover up for tainted judges and silence whistleblowers using disciplinary sanctions.

By 2019, it had become painfully clear that reforming the judiciary without changing the approach to composing these vital judicial governance bodies was impossible. The idea of a new approach was supported by reformers within government, civil society experts and Ukraines international partners. During his successful presidential election campaign in spring 2019, Volodymyr Zelenskyy also promised comprehensive reform of judicial governance.

Despite the fact that the recently adopted approach goes beyond established European recommendations on the judiciary, the Venice Commission of the Council of Europe positively evaluated the proposed international engagement in the cleansing of Ukraines judicial governance bodies.

These reforms are in line with the expectations of the International Monetary Fund, which made it one of the key conditionalities for their ongoing program with Ukraine. The reboot also features in the EU-Ukraine macro-financial assistance agreement, while the G-7 Ambassadors Reform Support Group included it in its roadmap for strengthening the rule of law in Ukraine.

After a number of judicial reform false starts, the engagement of foreign professionals in the selection of members of Ukraines judicial governance bodies has led many to take the recently adopted reforms particularly seriously. A similar approach has previously been used during the competition to recruit members of Ukraines High Anticorruption Court and proved effective.

For the HQCJ, three foreign experts will be part of a six-member selection panel, which will shortlist 32 candidates for 16 HQCJ offices. For the HCJ, three foreign experts will be part of a six-member Ethics Council, which will assess HCJ candidates on the basis of integrity and shortlist the best candidates. The Ethics Council will also conduct a one-time integrity screening of current HCJ members and request the appointing bodies to fire or reconfirm the HCJ members in question.

Ukraine is now in the early stages of what promises to be one of the most decisive battles for the historic transformation of the country. The new laws adopted in July are only the first step in a necessarily long and complex journey toward establishing genuine rule of law in Ukraine.

Much still has to be done in order to fully and transparently implement the adopted laws. Far too often in Ukraines reform story, legislation that looks good on paper has fallen flat when it comes to implementation. Moreover, it is also important to note that the laws themselves are not ideal and contain some flaws that opponents of reform will likely seek to exploit.

Despite these concerns, there is good cause for optimism. The recent adoption of these new laws is arguably the closest Ukraine has been to genuine judicial reform since the country renewed its independence in 1991. As Ukrainians prepare to celebrate the 30th anniversary of statehood on August 24, this reform progress is also worth toasting.

UkraineAlert is a comprehensive online publication of the Atlantic Council that provides regular news and analysis on developments in Ukraines politics, economy, civil society, and culture. The views expressed in UkraineAlert are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff or its supporters.

The article above is reprinted from UkraineAlert with the permission of its editor. It was first published online at https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/ukraine-takes-a-big-step-towards-judicial-reform/.

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Ukraine takes a big step toward judicial reform - The Ukrainian Weekly