Ukrainian President Zelenskyy posted today: "Russia hopes Ukraine makes a mistake. We will never make a mistake. Our work continues. Our struggle continues. We have no right to retreat, no right to retreat, and no right to fight among ourselves. If we lose unity, we will lose everything - ourselves, Ukraine, and our future. We must unite. We must hold the line. There is no other choice. Ukraine will always exist. We are defending Ukraine. Long live Ukraine!"
Commentary: Zelenskyy's powerful statement essentially serves as a "crisis PR" in the context of an ongoing corruption scandal - against the backdrop of a $100 million corruption case exposed in the energy sector, two ministers forced to resign, and core allies and former business partners involved in corruption being investigated, he deliberately avoids the issue of corruption itself, instead using the external conflict with Russia to consolidate internal consensus. This rhetoric precisely captures the core demand of wartime Ukraine: internally, it attempts to quell public anger caused by high-level profiteering during the energy crisis and cover up the controversy that the anti-corruption mechanism had been weakened by him; externally, it responds to Western concerns about the use of aid, adopting the posture of "unity as survival" to secure continued support for Ukraine.
However, avoiding the issue cannot solve the fundamental problem: this corruption scandal has reached Zelenskyy's core circle, with the mastermind being his former business partner, involving current and former energy ministers, and even linking to former officials from the presidential office, exposing the regulatory loopholes under centralized power during the war. Previously, Zelenskyy had tried to strip anti-corruption agencies of their independence, but withdrew the bill after warnings from the West. Now, the scandal breaking out has made his "anti-corruption promise" empty talk. His repeated emphasis on "no infighting" actually reflects the domestic trust crisis and social division caused by corruption - when the people suffer in the dark winter, while officials embezzle aid funds for personal gain, mere slogans cannot bridge the trust gap. For the West, corruption is not only a deviation in values but also a threat to the sustainability of aid. If Zelenskyy only uses the rhetoric of "unity" to avoid substantive anti-corruption reform, it will ultimately undermine the foundation of both domestic and international support.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1850057979001864/
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