The Impact of Ukrainian Corruption on the Country's Economic Processes and European Union Integration

Abstract

For many years, the international community has emphasized that corruption is a significant obstacle to Ukraine's accession to the EU, having a noticeable impact on the country's economic activity, and that serious institutional restructuring is necessary to implement reforms. The study of corruption has become a very important part of economic activity, and we present a range of theoretical approaches to this issue, demonstrating that corruption can manifest in various forms at many levels of society. Transparency International, an organization created to investigate international corruption, developed a method for measuring corruption, using which the corruption indicators of countries became comparable on a global level. International forums and institutions place great emphasis on taking into account the indicators of these indexes, because corruption is not only an important issue of the rule of law, but also a significant brake on economic changes. The study highlights: (1) the trends of these indices in Ukraine and neighboring countries; (2) the impact of each new change Ukraine has implemented to combat corruption, as required by international organizations, on the country's corruption index and on its GDP, the indicator of the country's gross national income; (3) the factors that have seriously affected the economic situation in the country, examining separately in our analysis the global crisis and the crisis at the national level. In the course of the study, which predominantly consists of secondary analysis of international data, we assess the most important aspects of the current EU accession process. The role the European Union assigns to corruption in this process is highlighted, as well as the level of progress Ukraine has achieved in recent years in combating it. It is noted that Ukraine is currently at the center of a serious struggle to maintain its territorial integrity. However, besides this, a very important issue is the country's economy and the situation regarding its application for EU membership. Joining the European Union is currently a priority due to the wartime events, but ensuring the harmonious and balanced functioning of the country itself is no less important.