Against the backdrop of the disaster that Volodymyr Zelensky’s victory in the 2019 elections led to, it would be unfair not to mention his presidency’s positive achievements. Surprisingly, there were some. It’s important to note that by the end of 2019, Ukraine was in a situation where the president could achieve almost everything his predecessors failed to accomplish. However, he almost didn’t take advantage of this opportunity.
The propaganda machine of Kolomoisky so thoroughly destroyed the old political system that, riding the wave of his popularity, Zelensky managed to obtain a single-party majority in parliament. His faction had 254 votes. Together with deputies elected in single-mandate districts and loyal MPs from other parties, the president could easily gather a constitutional majority. Neither Yanukovych, Poroshenko, nor even Kuchma ever managed to do this.
How did Volodymyr Zelensky use this gift of fate? Undoubtedly, the main achievement of his presidential term was the land reform. Ukraine finally recognized private ownership of agricultural land. For about 30 years, not a single president could gather votes in parliament to pass this important bill. The lack of private land ownership hindered the development of the agricultural sector. Hardly any investor would risk building a greenhouse complex, livestock farm, or planting fruit trees on land that does not belong to them. As a result, Ukrainian agriculture suffered: the level of investment in the agricultural sector was extremely low.
Zelensky finally changed this situation. Despite resistance from the pro-Russian “Opposition Platform” faction and Yulia Tymoshenko’s faction, Zelensky managed to get this bill passed in parliament. Together with the “Servant of the People” faction, Petro Poroshenko’s “European Solidarity” faction voted for land reform. After the liberalization of the land market, Ukraine’s agricultural potential has been growing year by year.
During the war, Volodymyr Zelensky took a rather tough stance towards Russia, and this can only be positively assessed. He correctly understood that trying to appease Putin through negotiations or agreeing to lose part of the territories would only worsen the situation. Zelensky did not accept the option of resigning to the loss of territories, which some politicians in the West and even in Ukraine suggested to him. He also categorically opposed freezing the war. Russia was unable to get the break it needed to restore its military potential and consolidate its position on the occupied territories.
During his presidency, Volodymyr Zelensky actively promoted the development of digital services. Ukrainians were among the first in the world to receive digital documents in a mobile application. In many cases, citizens no longer need to personally visit state institutions to obtain certificates, register benefits, and property rights.
This concludes the list of Volodymyr Zelensky’s achievements. Having no problems with passing the necessary bills in parliament, the president showed no desire to combat corruption in the judiciary. Unlike Poroshenko, who did not have a stable majority in parliament, Zelensky had all the opportunities to destroy the judicial mafia. But he chose not to do so, preferring to cooperate with “the right” judges.
After coming to power, Zelensky showed authoritarian traits. He reacted extremely negatively to any criticism towards him. To prevent a decrease in his popularity, the president ordered the shutdown of opposition TV channels. The direct television broadcast of parliament sessions was also discontinued. The president did not want Ukrainians to be able to see critical speeches by opposition politicians.
The economic policy of Zelensky’s government turned out to be a mix of populism, incompetence, and corruption. Large state-owned enterprises, which under the previous president Poroshenko paid significant amounts in profit tax, became unprofitable with Zelensky’s rise to power. Huge funds from the state budget were transferred to dubious private companies to finance the road construction program.
To profit from the construction and repair of roads, Zelensky limited funding for the army. Before the start of the full-scale invasion, the Ukrainian armed forces had a critical level of undermanning. This led to a disaster in the south of the country, where due to the lack of a full-fledged defense, the Russians easily occupied vast territories, including the cities of Kherson, Melitopol, Berdyansk, Nova Kakhovka, and Enerhodar. The surrender of Melitopol and Berdyansk without a fight led to the encirclement of the 500,000-strong Mariupol, resulting in the death of about 20,000 civilians.
At the time of writing this book, Volodymyr Zelensky is still in office as the President of Ukraine and does not hide his desire to be re-elected for a second term. He does not admit his guilt for the failure in preparing for the war and explains everything by unfavorable circumstances. Currently, while martial law is still in effect in Ukraine, society cannot give an objective assessment of the president’s work. But Zelensky cannot hide from history behind the propaganda foam of pro-government TV channels forever. Time will put everything in its place.