The Special Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) will soon hire four new prosecutors, based on competition results from December 28, SAPO chief Nazar Kholodnytsky has said.

"It is good our ranks will be strengthened – four new prosecutors for SAPO as a result of a complicated competition that ended yesterday. The number of criminal cases we are working has more than doubled this year," Kholodnytsky said on his Facebook page on Friday, December 29.

The SAPO chief thanked agents from the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), who this year "professionally conducted their official activities."

"No matter what certain media or television experts say, there will be results only if we work together. This year, despite everything, we worked together to achieve a result," he said.

Kholodnytsky also thanked international, American and European partners, who "sincerely worry" about the creation and development of anti-corruption agencies in Ukraine and who "actually help fight corruption in Ukraine."

As earlier reported, Kholodnytsky said on December 20, 2017, SAPO would return UAH 45 million to Ukraine's state budget that was not used in 2017 for budgeted staffing plans.