With a new parliament elected last weekend, the Ukrainian political establishment has no more excuses for failing to make vital changes in economic regulation and the way the country is governed. Unfortunately instead of a series of swift moves to avoid an economic meltdown, the winners have resorted to the tired political circus that has kept Ukraine to the edge of ruin in its 23 years of independence.
Kiev, the city I lived in for the last year of former President Viktor Yanukovych's disastrous rule and visited many times as the winter revolution unfolded, feels tired and depressed. It was not directly touched by the war in eastern Ukraine, where pro-Russian separatists now hold a large piece of territory, but many in the capital mourn dead friends or feel emotionally exhausted after watching part of their country ripped off by Moscow-backed thugs.
Streets and restaurants empty out earlier than they used to, shady characters gather on street corners, and many houses do not yet have central heating or hot water, though an icy crust coats the roads at night. Once abundant advertising is replaced by patriotic slogans on downtown billboards, and U.S. dollars cannot be bought except on the black market, where the rate is about 10 percent higher than the official one.