Authors

Mikhail Minakov³; Nataliya Kibita²; Oleksandra Moskalenko¹; David Dalton⁴;  ¹ London School of Economics and Political Science, UK;  ² University of Oxford, UK;  ³ Woodrow Wilson Center, United States;  ⁴ Dragonfly, UK

Discussion

The development of any state typically consists of prolonged periods of inertia, interspersed with generally shorter intervals of critical junctures during which states are presented with windows of opportunity to change their developmental trajectories. Such changes are not always desired or necessary. However, in the case of Ukraine, a change in its developmental path is not only desired but also inevitable. The Russian annexation of Crimea and parts of Donbas in 2014, followed by the full-scale invasion in February 2022, marked the end of the post-Soviet period in Ukraine’s development and the beginning of a new chapter in its history. What path Ukraine will choose remains to be seen. Ukraine’s commitment to democracy and a market economy seems unshakeable today. However, the three decades of post-Soviet recovery have yielded modest results. What can Ukraine do to avoid reverting to its post-Soviet condition, which was marred by corruption and high inequality?

This roundtable brings together three academic authors who examine the long-term development of the Ukrainian institutional system, and the mistakes made during earlier efforts to reform it. The discussion aims to evaluate the risks of Ukraine remaining entrenched in institutional inertia and to offer approaches for Ukraine’s recovery programme.