Ukraine’s Foreign Minister tenders resignation in major government overhaul

Zelenskyy's long-standing diplomat tendered his resignation on a record "day of resignations," expected to shake up half of Ukraine’s ministers.

Sep 4, 2024 - 09:00

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister tenders resignation in major government overhaul

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba.

Dmytro Kuleba, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, submitted his letter of resignation, reported Ukraine’s parliamentary speaker, Ruslan Stefanchuk.

The minister’s resignation comes amid a major overhaul in President Zelenskyy’s cabinet, initiated a day earlier. On 3 September, David Arakhamia, head of President Zelenskyy’s party in parliament, hinted at a “day of dismissals,” during which over half of the government officials will be replaced, on his Telegram channel.

On that day, resignations were tendered by Denys Maliuska, the Minister of Justice of Ukraine; Ruslan Strilets, the Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources; and Oleksandr Kamyshin, the Minister for Strategic Industries, who oversees Ukraine’s arms manufacturing, according to Stefanchuk.

They were followed by Vice Prime Ministers Olha Stefanyshyna, responsible for Ukraine’s European and Euro-Atlantic integration, and Iryna Vereshchuk, in charge of reintegrating temporarily occupied territories. Vitaliy Koval, the head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine, also requested to resign on 3 September.

Stefanchuk stated that the resignation requests will be discussed at one of the upcoming plenary sessions.

Dmytro Kuleba, who assumed office in March 2020, was one of the longest-serving ministers in President Zelenskyy’s cabinet. Since the outbreak of the full-scale invasion, the minister led Ukraine’s diplomatic efforts to secure international support, including crucial decisions by Western allies regarding military aid to Ukraine.

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