Reforms, New Elites, and Old Structures: How to Win the Battle for a New Ukraine?

In the two years since its "Revolution of Dignity" - also known as Euromaidan - Ukraine has launched important reform initiatives. Most of them are still in the inception phase, however, and much remains to be done to ensure their sustainability. The past two years have made clear the enormity of the challenge Ukraine faces in its transformation. At the same time, it has also shown unprecedentedly strong determination on the part of new reform-minded actors to overhaul the old system. Ukraine today can best understood as a battlefield: the old system and its structures are fighting for their survival, as new actors - from both within the system and outside it - push for a new social contract. This struggle is taking place on an everyday basis at different levels, national and local, in a number of different reform areas. External actors can best contribute by giving stronger support to reformers while promoting development of institutions that limit the space for vested interests to persist. Special attention should be paid to enforcing and implementing already adopted decisions and new laws that change the rules of the game

How western populism weakens democracy in Ukraine

What does the election of Donald Trump and the rise of ‘populist’ parties across Europe mean for Ukraine? Iryna Solonenko argues that populism in Europe, and in the West generally, plays into the hands of anti-democratic forces in the country, supporting Russia’s destabilising influence and threatening Ukraine’s democratic future

Rule of Law Reform after Zelenskyi's First Year: a Return to Business as Usual in Ukraine

In 2019, Volodymyr Zelenskyi won a strong mandate to fundamentally change Ukraine and make it less corrupt. One year into his presidency, however, there have been no significant breakthroughs. Powerful vested interests and a lack of strategic vision have fragmented Zelenskyi’s leadership. Progress in rule of law reform has again been held up by Ukraine’s old system heavily invested in preserving the status quo. Western pressure and financial conditionality are now the key remaining incentives for reform

The equipment for determining the impact of traffic environment on road pavement

The article presents the classification of equipment developed by the author for the research of the operational characteristics of road pavement. The equipment was classified according to the following criteria: type of equipment; type of contact element; mode of interaction with the supporting surface; type of fixture of the suspension element; number of contact elements; sample type; type of load. For illustrations, the classification of the most common equipment was carried out. The research was conducted to compare and select the most rational equipment to study the effect of traffic environment on the road pavement. The research was carried out by the multi-criteria analysis. Based on the conducted research, the most rational installations for conducting experiments were determined

The use of cement concrete pavements for roads, depending on climatic conditions

The development of road network infrastructure is an important component of the economic development of the European Union. Updating of the road network contributes to the integration of the economies of countries into a coherent whole. The road network provides the free movement of citizens, the movement of goods and the effective implementation of various services. The increase in the length of the road network leads to an increase in the financial and material costs necessary to ensure its maintenance and repair. One of the ways to reduce costs is by strengthening the physic-mechanical and operational characteristics of the pavement due to the widespread use of cement concrete. The quality of the pavement of cement concrete depends largely on the rational selection of its composition. This allows a significant increase in the durability of road pavement. The purpose of the research was: the development of recommendations for the rational selection of the composition of the road pavement material of cement concrete, aimed at upgrading longevity, and taking into account its frost resistance grade. According to the goal, the following tasks were developed: the analyses of the climatic zones in which the road network of the European Union is located; the development of a research plan, a selection of the response function and influence factors; the study of physico-mechanical and operational characteristics of the researched material of road pavement; on the basis of the obtained data, the calculation of the complex of experimental-statistical models, which describe the physico-mechanical and operational characteristics of the road pavement material; on the basis of experimental statistical models, a method was proposed for selecting the rational compositions of the cement concrete pavement road material depending on the conditions of its application. The results presented in the article can be used in engineering and scientific practice for the selection of road pavement from cement concrete for highways

Poroschenko im Rampenlicht: Der gesellschaftliche Wunsch nach Rechtsstaatlichkeit setzt Selenskyj unter Zugzwang

Seit dem Amtsantritt von Präsident Wolodymyr Selenskyj vor einem Jahr wird dessen Amtsvorgänger Petro Poroschenko einer ganzen Reihe gravierender Verbrechen verdächtigt. Während die institutionellen Kapazitäten zur Untersuchung der immer komplexer werdenden Korruption in den oberen Etagen immer noch gering sind, erscheinen die zentralen Anschuldigungen gegen Poroschenko, nämlich Hochverrat, Amtsmissbrauch und Korruption, schlecht begründet zu sein. Sie lassen befürchten, dass es sich hier um politisch motivierte Strafverfolgung handeln könnte. Angesichts der gescheiterten Justizreform und einer fehlenden Vision von unabhängiger Justiz besteht in der Gesellschaft ein starker Wunsch nach Gerechtigkeit. Die Strategie der amtierenden Regierung scheint sich daher auf leicht und schnell zu erzielende Resultate zu konzentrieren. Das wiederum bedeutet, dass eine umfassende und nachhaltige Justizreform hintenangestellt wird. Dies könnte das Vertrauen der Gesellschaft in die ukrainische Rechtsstaatlichkeit noch weiter schrumpfen lassen

Kann die Östliche Partnerschaft die Erwartungen der Ukraine erfüllen?

Obwohl die EU in der Ukraine im Rahmen der Östlichen Partnerschaft (ÖP) viel erreicht hat, bleibt die ÖP nach wie vor hinter den Erwartungen der Ukraine zurück. In der zweiten Dekade der ÖP wird nun von der EU erwartet, dass sie den ÖP-Staaten einen weitergehenden Rahmen für die gemeinsamen Beziehungen bietet, allen voran eine tiefere Integration in den EU-Binnenmarkt, sowie ein stärkeres Engagement in den Bereichen Sicherheit und Demokratisierung. Der bevorstehende ÖP-Gipfel bietet die Chance, diese Erwartungen aufzugreifen und auf praktische Ebene umzusetzen

Die Ukraine wählt: die politische Landkarte im Vorfeld der Parlamentswahlen

Am 26. Oktober finden in der Ukraine vorgezogene Parlamentswahlen statt. Nach den Euromaidan-Protesten wurde im Februar die neue Regierung ernannt, im Mai wurde der neue Präsident gewählt. Die Wahl des neuen Parlaments vollendet den Prozess der Erneuerung der politischen Institutionen nach dem Euromaidan. Ob diese Erneuerung auch eine Erneuerung des Systems der Regierungsführung mit sich bringen wird, ist jedoch noch nicht klar