Ukraine’s FM Kuleba resigns ahead of expected government reshuffle

Kuleba has been a key figure of Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s full-scale invasion, shoring up support from the EU, NATO and allies across the globe.

Dmytro Kuleba has resigned from his position as Ukraine’s foreign minister following an announcement last week from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that a cabinet reshuffle was imminent as he tries to strengthen the government two and a half years into Russia’s war against its neighbour.
Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said on Facebook on Wednesday that Kuleba had submitted his resignation request and that it will be discussed by MPs at the next plenary meeting.
Since taking office in 2020, Kuleba has been a key figure in Ukraine’s efforts to fight off Russia’s full-scale invasion, travelling across the world to secure allies and mobilise support from the country’s international partners.
During the war, Kuleba has been second only to Zelenskyy in carrying Ukraine’s message and needs to an international audience, whether through social media posts or meetings with foreign dignitaries. In July, Kuleba became the highest-ranking Ukrainian official to visit China since Russia’s full-scale invasion started in February 2022.
Domestic media had been awash with rumours in recent days that Kuleba would be dismissed and that his replacement was still under consideration.
The name at the forefront appears to be Deputy Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, according to reports.
The news of Kuleba’s resignation comes after various other leading ministers also submitted their letters of resignation the day before, ahead of the expected government reshuffle. The jobs of justice minister, ecology minister and various deputy prime minister roles are now all up for grabs, among others.
More than half the current cabinet will undergo changes, said Davyd Arakhamiia, a leader of Zelenskyy’s party in the Ukrainian parliament. Ministers will be resigning on Wednesday and new appointments will be made on Thursday, he said.
Kuleba’s resignation followed an overnight Russian attack on Lviv, which killed at least seven people and injured 35.
A child and a medical worker were among the dead and others are in critical condition, Lviv Mayor Andrii Sadovyi said on Wednesday.
The attack happened a day after two ballistic missiles blasted a military academy and nearby hospital in Poltava in Ukraine, killing more than 50 people and wounding more than 200 others, Ukrainian officials said, in one of the deadliest Russian strikes since the war began.
The missiles tore into the heart of the Poltava Military Institute of Communication’s main building, causing several stories to collapse.
The missiles hit shortly after an air-raid alert sounded when many people were on their way to a bomb shelter, Ukraine’s Defence Ministry said, describing the strike Tuesday as “barbaric”.
Poltava is about 350 kilometres southeast of Kyiv, on the main highway and rail route between Kyiv and Ukraine’s second-largest city, Kharkiv, which is close to the Russian border.
The attack happened as Ukrainian forces sought to carve out their holdings in Russia’s Kursk border region after a surprise Ukrainian incursion that began on 6 August and as the Russian army hacks its way deeper into eastern Ukraine.