Zelenskyy's office slams former EC chief's claims of total corruption in Ukraine

The head of the President's Office Andriy Yermak "categorically dismissed" the statement that Ukraine is very corrupt. In an interview with Politico, he responded to the words of the former president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker.

"Everyone who has had anything to do with Ukraine knows that this is a country that is corrupt at all levels of society. Despite its efforts, it is not ready to join [the European Union]; it needs large-scale internal reforms," Juncker said in an interview to the German publication Augsburger Allgemeine on October 6.

Politico writes that in response to this, a "clearly irked" Yermak replied: I don’t recall Mr. Juncker visiting Ukraine in the last couple of years. So it’s a bit strange for me to hear these words from him."

"I am categorically dismissing the statement that Ukraine is very corrupt. These challenges happen all over the world, but could you please give me an example of one other country that, under conditions of this horrific war, would undertake the reforms on such a scale," said Volodymyr Zelenskyy's chief-of-staff.

On October 25, the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology published a study according to which, in the context of the fight against corruption, 59% of Ukrainians see positive changes, while another 34% consider the situation hopeless.

On October 26, the KIIS survey showed that the vast majority of Ukrainians (90%) have a request for tougher anti-corruption measures, while 68% of citizens consider it the #1 priority for Ukraine and its future.

On Saturday, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen , said that she was "impressed" with the reforms that Ukraine carried out amid war.