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(Bloomberg) — Three Ukrainian cabinet ministers submitted their resignations on Tuesday amid speculation of a broader government reshuffle as the war-battered nation confronts a growing barrage of Russian missile strikes.
As Ukraine approaches its third winter since the war began, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signaled in July that he was preparing a government overhaul. The ministerial shakeup takes place as the country is facing mounting challenges across the board, with the looming heating season exposing vulnerabilities of the energy system increasingly targeted by Russian attacks.
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Justice Minister Denys Malyuska, Environment Protection Minister Ruslan Strilets, and Strategic Industries Minister Oleksandr Kamyshyn, who oversees domestic weapons production, submitted their resignations to parliament, the assembly’s speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said in a post on Facebook. The head of the State Property Fund, Vitaliy Koval also submitted his resignation. The legislature needs to vote to approve the resignations.
Late on Tuesday, Zelenskiy also dismissed the deputy head of his Office Rostyslav Shurma, who oversaw economic issues. Shurma was an influential figure in Zelenskiy’s power hierarchy. He has come under criticism from Kyiv foreign donors including the International Monetary Fund for controversial ideas like a plan, which wasn’t eventually implemented, to reduce taxes during the time of war. He was also a subject of a corruption investigation, but denies any wrongdoings.
The need to replenish front-line units with new troops conflicts with the shortage of workforce, while the success of Kyiv’s surprise offensive in Russia’s Kursk region is getting offset by the crawling advances of Moscow’s troops in the east.
Earlier this week state-owned company Ukrenergo, which operates Ukraine’s power grid, dismissed its chief Volodymyr Kudrytskyi. He lost his post amid increasing outcry over regular blackouts and allegations of failing to provide effective protection to energy infrastructure against Russian aerial strikes.
(Updates with dismissal of Zelenskiy’s deputy chie of staff in the 4th paragraph.)
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