On July 14, the Verkhovna Rada voted to dismiss Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko along with the entire Cabinet of Ministers. 258 voted in favor, one against, five abstained. Three days remained until the anniversary of her appointment.
A Year Between Front and Fund
Svyrydenko took over the Cabinet on July 17, 2025 — Ukraine's first female prime minister in history. Zelensky then formulated the task without romanticism: the share of domestic weapons on the front, deregulation, digitalization, realistic social policy. The criterion — "each day should bring results."
The year turned out to be the most difficult since the full-scale war began: a shift in US policy, Hungarian blockades in the EU, an oil crisis, record-breaking terror during the heating season. Against this backdrop, the government managed to record several concrete results.
In November 2025, Ukraine and the IMF agreed on a new four-year extended financing program — $8.1 billion. Concurrently, Svyrydenko, together with then-deputies Sobolev and Kachka, coordinated the details of a minerals agreement with the Trump administration. The first investment from the Ukrainian-American Investment Fund for Reconstruction (URIF) was approved in March 2026.
"My first feeling after two days — the situation has changed"
Yulia Svyrydenko after talks in Washington
Among failures — low political independence: critics noted that key decisions were made in the Presidential Office, while the Cabinet performed a technical role. Before the final vote, Svyrydenko delivered a farewell speech but did not explain the reasons for resignation — she only quoted Zelensky: the president believes it necessary to "update the government and strengthen certain areas."
What's Next — and Why It Matters
Denis Shmygal — the same person Svyrydenko replaced a year ago — became acting prime minister. According to several Ukrainian media outlets, the main contender for the permanent post remains Naftogaz CEO Sergiy Koretskyi, although no official submission to the Rada has been made yet.
As for Svyrydenko herself: Zelensky offered her the position of ambassador to the United States — logical, given her experience in direct negotiations with the Trump administration. According to Telegraph, she declined this offer. Suspilne, for its part, reported that as of July 13, no response had been received.
If Svyrydenko truly refuses Washington — Ukraine will be searching for an ambassador to the US precisely when the minerals agreement requires operational support, and negotiations over an EU credit of 90 billion euros depend on Hungarian blockades. The new prime minister will receive these unresolved files on the day of appointment.
