Demonstrations against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s dismissal of defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov continued on Friday for the third consecutive day in Kiev and other cities across Ukraine.
According to the state news agency Ukrinform, many protesters are also demanding the sacking of the army’s commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrsky, who is seen as part of an older generation of top brass that is resistant to reforms.
As part of a major government reshuffle, Zelensky this week removed Prime Minister Julia Svyrydenko and Fedorov – who had only been in office for half a year – from the Cabinet.
The 35-year-old minister is regarded as a reformer who has overhauled the army’s procurement system and is strongly committed to the modernization and digitalization of Ukraine’s defence forces.
However, as he himself admits, Fedorov was embroiled in an ongoing dispute with General Syrsky. Ultimately, Zelensky decided to stand by the commander-in-chief and intends to nominate Yevchen Khmara, the acting head of the SBU intelligence service, as Fedorov’s successor.
This is the fourth time the Ukrainian defence minister has been replaced since the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022.
In other changes, Zelensky offered Taras Kachka, the former deputy head of government responsible for integration with the EU, the post of head of Ukraine’s mission to the European Union in Brussels.
Ukrainian lawmakers on Thursday confirmed Sergii Koretskyi as the country’s new prime minister. The former head of the state-run energy company Naftogaz received 289 votes in parliament, well above the necessary 226.
The reshuffle marks the second change of prime minister since Ukraine’s invasion by its neighbour.
