FOREIGN POLICY IMPACT ON UKRAINE’S REPUTATIONAL CHARACTER

Abstract

The article examines the peculiarity of the interaction between political parties and local governments in the context of decentralization in Ukraine. Over the past decade, Ukraine has been implementing a largescale decentralization reform, which involves the transfer of significant powers and resources to local levels. In such a transformation of the governance system, not only executive bodies but also political parties are beginning to play a significant role, which at the regional level influence the formation of local policy, personnel appointments, strategic planning and the quality of public administration in general. Considerable attention is paid to the analysis of the features of regional representation, the imbalance of the party system, as well as cases of political dominance of certain forces in the regions, which affects both the transparency of decisionmaking and public trust in government bodies. The problem of political fragmentation, the lack of stable party centers in the localities and the challenges associated with the personalization of politics at the local level is also revealed. The article emphasizes that decentralization in Ukraine has created unique prerequisites for the development of local democracy, but the effectiveness of this process largely depends on the level of maturity of party structures, their ability to engage in constructive dialogue with local governments, and the absence of conflict between political interests and community needs.