Fraud in Ukraine

An explosion in fraud, especially the piracy of recordings and computer software, is part of the continuing criminalisation of the Ukrainian economy. Mark Galeotti, director of the Organised Russian and Eurasian Crime Research Unit at Keele University, considers the problem.

Dr Mark Galeotti is Director of the Organised Russian and Eurasian Crime Research Unit at Keele University, and a former adviser to the Foreign & Commonwealth Office.

As is the case in so many post-Soviet states, Ukraine suffers from serious and deep-rooted organised crime, corruption and institutionalised law-breaking. The problem has many fraudulent aspects, from the petty tricks of the unofficial money-changers, who still manage to slip tourists bundles of worthless Yugoslav currency in return for their dollars and deutschmarks, through to the major underground industries which produce counterfeit goods of every kind. Underpinning the whole process are two key drivers: the strength of organised crime and the level of corruption within the country’s elites.