July 17, 2026, 3:29 p.mJuly 17, 2026, 3:29 p.m
There have been protests in the city center against the dismissal of Mikhail Fedorov for three days.Image: keystone
In Kiev and other cities in Ukraine, demonstrations against President Volodymyr Zelensky’s personnel policies continue for the third day in a row. The demonstrators are primarily demanding the reinstatement of the dismissed Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, as reported by the state news agency Ukrinform.
Many also called for the army’s top commander, Olexander Syrsky, to be fired. The common symbol of the protests were the slogans on brown cardboard boards.
Zelensky has chosen army chief
During a major government reshuffle, Zelensky removed Fedorov, who has only been in office for six months, from the cabinet. The 35-year-old minister is considered a reformer who has changed the procurement system for the army and who relies heavily on mechanization and digitalization of the Ukrainian defense. However, as he himself admits, Fedorov was in an ongoing dispute with General Syrsky. In this conflict, Zelensky chose to stick with the supreme commander.
Mikhailo Fedorov, here at a conference in early July.Image: keystone
The president wants to nominate the acting head of the SBU secret service, Yevhenij Khmara, as the new defense minister. Initially, former Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko was in discussion for the defense department. Zelenskyj now announced that Klymenko will be the new secretary of the National Security Council. The post has so far been held by former Defense Minister Rustem Umjerov, who led negotiations with the USA and Russia to end the war for a long time – and whose political future is unclear.
Zelensky offered the previous deputy head of government, Taras Katschka, who was responsible for integration with the EU, to take over the management of the Kiev representation to the European Union in Brussels. (sda/dpa)