The National Bureau had a productive start of the year marked by exposure of an MP, a deputy of the Kyiv City Council, PGO officials. However, with russia’s all-out invasion, we had to adapt to the new reality. From the first day of the big war, NABU employees joined the resistance. We recorded russian war crimes, helped take the Ukrainian military out of the threat of shelling, collected and communicated the geolocation of enemy units, ensured the safety of the capital and demined territories. Some of our team decided to join the Armed Forces and are now taking part in hostilities. However, we never stopped to investigate top corruption. No criminal proceedings were closed because of the war. We launched 163 investigations, notified 38 persons of suspicion, ensured the transfer of funds seized and posted in bail in criminal proceedings to the needs of the Armed Forces. All this against the backdrop of cut in expenses for expert examinations and translations, the non-appearance and sometimes manipulations of suspects and defendants, the absence of SAPO head, the end of the tenure of the first NABU Director, Artem Sytnyk. I thank everyone – the Bureau team, international partners, NGOs, volunteers – for joining forces in the fight against the enemy and corruption. I am sure we will succeed! The fight goes on. Until victory!

In the second half of 2022, SAPO and NABU continued to work under martial law and, despite tough conditions, showed decent results. During this period, we prosecuted 149 individuals, which is the highest six-month figure for the entire period of work.

Although due to the war, a significant number of Ukrainian citizens, including participants in criminal proceedings, left the country, we achieved significant results in bringing cases to court. Prosecutors intensified their efforts regarding civil confiscation and won three lawsuits for the collection of illegally gained assets into the state's income.

At the end of the year, our team got eight new prosecutors, appointed in an open and transparent competition. Meanwhile, the lack of almost a quarter of SAPO prosecutors, who continue to defend Ukraine, is critical for the effective work of the institution and leads to an increase in the workload on employees. Unfortunately, at the time of the aggressive war launched by the russian federation against Ukraine, high-ranking corruption is gaining new momentum. This phenomenon will not disappear or take a break. That is why we will continue to step up our struggle for the establishment of the principles of the rule of law and justice, for the sake of Ukraine’s European democratic future without corruption.