Britain concerned at ‘faltering’ Ukraine reforms, says UK foreign minister Johnson

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Ukraine's Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, right, and Britain's Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Boris Johnson pose for a family photo ahead of a Ukraine Reform Conference at Lancaster House in London on Thursday. Photo: AP

Published: 1:10pm, 7 Jul 2017Updated: 1:10pm, 7 Jul 2017

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Thursday he was worried Ukrainian government reforms were faltering, citing concerns over the selection of Supreme Court judges and obstacles facing anti-graft civil society groups.

Johnson made the remarks as he opened an international conference in London held to discuss the progress made in Ukraine on a reform programme which started in 2014 after a popular uprising driven partly by public anger over sleaze.

“There are worrying signs that reform is faltering and we’re seeing some concern about selection of new members of the Supreme Court, a lack of progress in creating special anti-corruption courts,” Johnson said.

“Corruption has got to be rooted out, I think we all agree, across the board.”

Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson poses for a photo at Lancaster House in London with fellow attendees of the Ukraine Reform Conference on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

Ukraine’s central bank said on Thursday that the government’s delays in passing reforms mean Ukraine will probably receive $3 billion in aid from the International Monetary Fund this year instead of the $4.5 billion originally envisaged.

Ukrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, who led the Ukrainian delegation and presented his government’s Reform Action Plan for the next three years, pledged to continue to fight corruption and reform corporate governance.