Ukraine. The first year of President Zelensky

The article is an attempt to analyze some results of the first year of President V. Zelensky’s tenure. The time elapsed since his election is not long enough to fully answer the question whether the new leadership has met the electorate expectations. The COVID-19 pandemic, the economic crisis, and political uncertainty in Europe and beyond are all contributing factors. It is already possible to compare what has been made with what has been promised and try to give an idea of what will be the future trajectory of almost thirty years of the «Ukrainian transit». This is determined by the internal logic of Ukraine’s evolution, internal situation, and strong external influences. All factors mentioned have a roughly equal impact. The first one pushes forward, the second and the third – prevent it. The brief analysis shows that the public expectations on the eve of the elections ‒ both presidential and parliamentary ‒ consisted of a comprehensive and in-depth overhaul of the entire system of public administration. The article reveals that the policy goals of the new State administration of Ukraine, proclaimed by V. Zelensky, were objective and justified. However, the probability of their achievement is very low provided that the regime of the Third Ukrainian Republic is maintained. It is outdated and it should be replaced. The author concludes that this is the main challenge Ukraine is facing and a new generation of Ukrainian politicians will have to find an adequate response.