Open letter to Eurojust regarding its meeting with the Deputy Head of the Presidential Office of Ukraine, on May 8, 2025
Open letter to Eurojust regarding its meeting with the Deputy Head of the Presidential Office of Ukraine, on May 8, 2025
Dear Mr Schmid,
We, the undersigned Ukrainian civil society organisations, would like to express our deep appreciation for Eurojust’s steadfast support in strengthening Ukraine’s justice sector and assisting in the investigation of russian war crimes throughout its ongoing unprovoked aggression against Ukraine. The partnership between Eurojust and Ukrainian institutions has played a pivotal role in upholding the rule of law and advancing justice for victims of russia-committed crimes.
Nevertheless, we would like to address you with this letter to express our profound concern regarding the recent meeting of the Eurojust representatives with Oleh Tatarov, Deputy Head of the Office of the President, on May 8 in Kyiv. Mr. Tatarov’s political background has long been overshadowed by systematic obstruction of justice, corruption scandals, and an illegitimate grasp over the law enforcement institutions and the prosecutorial system under his unprecedented control.
In recent years, Mr. Tatarov has become an antithesis to fair justice, integrity, and transparent and equally applicable rule of law—values that Ukraine desperately strives for as a democratic country heading forward on its EU-integration path.
Throughout the last decade, a former Yanukovych-era top official, Mr. Tatarov has swiftly adapted to the new political setting. A symbol of the current Ukrainian authorities’ blindness to corruption among their top officials, Mr. Tatarov illegally escaped prosecution in 2021 for the high-level corruption he had been accused of. The then-Prosecutor General, the Security Service of Ukraine, and the representatives of the old unreformed judiciary obstructed the case. Mr. Tatarov’s current control over the unreformed law enforcement bloc has been marked by the rising pressure on the activists, the discretionary use of institutions like the State Bureau of Investigations to persecute political opponents, and also to hinder the judicial vetting process, which is a cornerstone of the ongoing complex reform of Ukraine’s judiciary, aligned with the EU integration commitments.
Moreover, back in 2013-14, when Ukrainian people were resisting the brutality and impunity of the Yanukovych regime, Mr. Tatarov served at the Interior Ministry and endorsed brutal special police crackdown on the Euromaidan peaceful activists. He was also refuting the law enforcement violence against the pro-European protesters and spreading blatant lies about the Maidan activists, despite the inhumane treatment and gross violation of human rights by the special police. In the years after the Revolution of Dignity, Mr. Tatarov was a top lawyer representing a fugitive pro-russian oligarch Vadym Novynskyi, and Andriy Portnov, a former deputy head of Yanukovych’s office.
Ukrainian citizens have repeatedly voiced their disapproval of Mr. Tatarov’s continued role in public office. Most notably, a public petition calling for his dismissal from the post of Deputy Head of the Presidential Office gathered over 25,000 signatures.
Given Mr. Tatarov’s disgraceful background and political conduct, we are deeply concerned that the meeting on May 8 may send a profoundly troubling message to the Ukrainian citizens and international audience. In particular, its public visibility may signal that the European Union and its institutions might be closing their eyes to compromised top officials in pursuit of political or institutional expediency.
Since February 2022, Ukraine has been fighting an existential and historic struggle against an authoritarian, imperialism-driven neighbour. However, for us, this is not only a battle for Ukraine’s sovereignty and freedom but a decade-long fight for European values, such as the rule of law, democratic governance, and human dignity. Hence, our reform progress, hard-won and often fragile to external malign influences, has depended on a clear rejection of those who have undermined the independence and integrity of Ukraine’s justice institutions.
As the EU’s agency for criminal justice cooperation, Eurojust represents the highest standards of legal accountability and democratic principles. The support of the Eurojust to proceed with prosecuting the russian crime of aggression against Ukraine via a dedicated tribunal is of utmost importance to Ukraine. Therefore, to our firm belief, Eurojust’s engagements in Ukraine must reflect the EU’s zero-tolerance approach to corruption while staunchly supporting institutions and individuals who have demonstrated integrity, professionalism, and public trust. By publicly engaging with individuals whose records are incompatible with these values, Eurojust risks legitimising discredited figures and empowering networks resistant to reform.
We stand committed to working constructively with Eurojust in the shared pursuit of justice, transparency, and democratic reform. At this critical moment in Ukraine’s history, it is essential that all international partners, especially those in the EU, hold the firm line on integrity and ensure that reform, not regression, defines our path forward, towards a joint future in the European Union.
This letter has been signed by:
Anti-Corruption Action Centre
All-Ukrainian Association “Automaidan”
International Centre for Ukrainian Victory
Center for Civil Liberties
Human Rights Center ZMINA
The Media Initiative for Human Rights
Centre for Economic Strategy
DEJURE Foundation
MEZHA Anti-corruption center
Nashi Groshi
CHESNO Movement
ANTS Network
Civil Network OPORA
Civil Control Platform
Anti-corruption Research and Educational Center
Ukrainian Legal Advisory Group
Anti-Corruption Headquarters
Kharkiv Anti Corruption CenterStateWatch Think Tank
Media group De-facto
NGO “Committee on Fighting Corruption in State Administration Bodies and Law Enforcement Bodies of Ukraine”
NGO “Avtomaidan Vinnychchyna”
Charitable fund “Club “Svitanok””
NGO “Women’s Anti Corruption Movement”
Charitable Fund “Let your heart beat”
NGO “Code 21” (Uzhhorod)
NGO “Coordination centre of public control”
Charitable society “All-Ukrainian network of people living with HIV/AIDS” (Lviv, Chernivtsi, Khmelnytskyi, Vinnytsia, Kropyvnytskyi, Ternopil departments)
Network of 100 Percent Life (Kyiv, Rivne, Kharkiv, Uzhhorod, Ivano-Frankisvk, Kropyvnytskyi, Cherkasy, Odesa, Dnipro, Zaporizhia branches)
NGO “Public Monitoring of Ukraine”
Ukrainian League of Lawyers for Combating Corruption
CENTRE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTIVITIES RESEARCH «CLEAR»
Intellectual Discussions Foundation
Traditional Cossack Regiment of Svyatoslav the Brave
Carpathian Institute of Euroatlantic Studies
Charitable Organization “Club ‘Svitanok’”
CO “Chernihiv NETWORK”
Charitable Organization “Light of Hope”
Public Organization “Club ‘Shans’”
Charitable Organization “Transcarpathian Charitable Society of the Network”