President Volodymyr Zelensky has signed into law a bill that restores the independence of Ukraine’s two main anti-corruption institutions - the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) - after widespread public protests and international pressure led to a swift political reversal. The move followed a landmark vote in the Verkhovna Rada on July 31, the first session to be livestreamed since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

The legislation passed with overwhelming support - 331 lawmakers voted in favor, none opposed, and no abstentions. It repeals controversial amendments approved just nine days earlier that had placed both agencies under the control of the Prosecutor General, undermining key safeguards established after the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution.

Zelensky, who had signed the earlier law on July 22, publicly thanked the parliament for backing his new draft and announced its immediate enactment via Telegram. He emphasized that the revised law guarantees the independence of anti-corruption bodies and strengthens trust in the rule of law at a time when the country is under constant threat.

The July 22 law triggered a wave of outrage at home and abroad. Critics said it allowed the Prosecutor General to interfere with NABU’s operations, issue binding instructions, and reassign cases, effectively eliminating institutional independence. Supporters of the bill had claimed it aimed to address alleged Russian influence within the agencies. Nonetheless, within days, thousands of Ukrainians staged demonstrations in Kyiv and other cities, gathering outside the Mariinskyi Palace and the Verkhovna Rada to demand the rollback of the law.

Following the backlash, Zelensky submitted a new legislative proposal just two days after signing the controversial law. The bill was backed by Ukraine’s prominent anti-corruption watchdog, AntAC, which welcomed the restoration of checks and balances.

Under the reinstated legislation, SAPO regains its autonomy and resumes full supervisory authority over NABU investigations, without oversight from the Prosecutor General. Within six months, however, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) must carry out background checks on all personnel within NABU, SAPO, and other agencies that handle classified information. Employees of these institutions will also be subject to polygraph testing every two years under SBU-approved procedures.

The vote on July 31 saw support from across the political spectrum: 214 lawmakers from Servant of the People, 27 from European Solidarity, 16 from Holos, and others from parties like Fatherland, Trust, For the Future, Platform for Life and Peace, and Restoration of Ukraine. Only nine MPs failed to participate in the vote.

The European Union, which had warned Kyiv that failure to reverse the earlier reforms could jeopardize aid and Ukraine’s accession path, has welcomed the change. Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos stated that the new law corrects the damage caused by the July 22 decision and restores crucial guarantees, though she noted ongoing challenges.

Ukraine relies heavily on external assistance as it battles Russian aggression. Since 2022, the EU and member states have allocated roughly $180 billion in military, humanitarian, and financial support. Brussels had privately cautioned Kyiv that further funding could be frozen unless the independence of anti-corruption institutions was reaffirmed.

Tensions around the initial legislation also sparked internal political friction. Dmytro Kostiuk, a Servant of the People MP who had backed the July 22 bill, later claimed that he and others were misled into thinking it had been vetted by Ukraine’s Western partners. He has since resigned from the party’s parliamentary group. Meanwhile, opposition MP Yaroslav Yurchyshyn of Holos described the July 31 vote as only a preliminary step toward rebuilding public trust and called for further action, including prosecuting high-profile corruption cases and protecting journalists and activists like Vitaliy Shabunin, who faces charges viewed by many as politically motivated.

The controversy unfolded alongside delays in broader anti-corruption reforms. Kyiv has missed key benchmarks, such as appointing a new head of the Bureau of Economic Security (BEB), a body created in 2021 to investigate financial crimes. Although candidate Oleksandr Tsyvinsky was favored by a selection committee and endorsed by the IMF, the government declined his appointment citing concerns over his father’s Russian citizenship - a fact long known to authorities.