Chairman of the Accounting Chamber called on the leaders of the European SAIs in Prague to help assess the damages caused by the war

Ukraine counts on the support of SAIs in Europe in assessing the damages caused by the war. This was stated by the Chairman of the Accounting Chamber Valeriy Patskan at the meeting of leaders of SAIs – members of the EUROSAI in Prague.

“I would very much like to talk today about the exchange of experiences and the best practices, plans for the future and achievements of the Sustainable Development Goals. Although what kind of global development and the Global Goals achievements can we talk about in the absence of peace? Today is 90 days since Ukraine has no peace due to russian total war,” Patskan said.

He noted that the events taking place in Ukraine affect political, economic and financial processes both in Europe and far beyond it.

“The global impact of russia's war is obvious. And the only way out is to join efforts to stop the aggressor and achieve peace, - the Chairman emphasises. Therefore, I urge you to identify among the priorities of EUROSAI as soon as possible the need to join efforts to properly assess the global impact of russia's attack on Ukraine, assess the damages caused by the war and make recommendations to our governments on how best to overcome this crisis”.

Valeriy Patskan noted that the scale of the damage caused by this war is difficult to overestimate. Ultimately, russia's aggression against Ukraine has not begun on February24, 2022. It has taken place much earlier – in 2014, with the annexation of Crimea and the occupation of Donbass.

"Every week, the direct losses of our economy due to the destruction and damage of civilian and military facilities increase by approximately USA 4.5 billion. The total losses of economy of Ukraine are much greater due to the war and are already according to rough estimates, at least USA 600 billion. Therefore, russia, which is already recognized as an aggressor country, must take responsibility for the war consequences. And no less important issue is to estimate the extent of the damage caused by the aggressor to our state and the requirements for the amount and forms of reparation," - the Chairman of the Accounting Chamber added.

He said that the President of Ukraine has already set up the working group on audit of the losses caused to Ukraine at the National Council for the Recovery, and the government has developed the Procedure for determining the damage and losses.

The Accounting Chamber of Ukraine, as the supreme audit institution, is working in this direction too. “In the near future, we plan to undertake a range of sectoral analyses. Their results will contribute to the audit opinion formation on the assessment by the Government of the extent and forms of direct and indirect damage caused by armed aggression. The objectivity of loss-control mechanisms used by state agencies, methods of calculating them, impartiality and verification are important for both Ukrainian society and our international partners, - Valeriy Patskan said. - We need methodological and methodological support from the EUROSAI community. In particular, we need the support in determining the purpose and strategies of such specific audit tasks, the scope and depth of research to be performed by auditors, and also in making effective recommendations to restore citizens' sense of justice and security."

The Chairman of the Accounting Chamber ensures that joint efforts improve the quality of activity and promote greater transparency and trust.

 “In 2019 I addressed III EUROSAI – ASOSAI Joint Conference held in Jerusalem with the Accounting Chamber’s initiative for Establishment of TASK FORCE on the Audit of Assessment of Damages and Losses and the Use of Funds for Elimination of the Consequences of Military Conflicts. This initiative is more relevant today than ever. Ukraine is not alone in suffering losses. The States of the anti-russian coalition are forced to make decisions that will affect the economic, financial, social and other indicators of the well-being of your countries. Therefore, the highest audit bodies must reassure the public that such decisions of governments are effective, efficient and not in vain in the fight against the aggressor. Together we will restore peace and justice both in Ukraine and the whole of Europe, ”Valeriy Patskan summed up.

Note:

EUROSAI is a European organization of supreme audit institutions established in 1990. Today it unites 51 SAIs (Supreme Audit Institutions of 50 countries and the European Court of Auditors). The Accounting Chamber has been a full member of EUROSAI since 1999.