Rallies in support of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov began in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities after it emerged the previous day that he would be stepping down.
In the capital, participants gathered at Ivan Franko Square. According to Suspilne, the demonstration was announced by veteran and former combat medic Dmytro Kozyatynskyi. People arrived with placards and chanted: “Bring Fedorov back,” “Shame,” and “Syrskyi resign.”
The outlet says similar actions also began in Ivano-Frankivsk, Vinnytsia, Lutsk, Khmelnytskyi, Lviv, Uzhhorod, Dnipro, Ternopil, and Odesa.
Amid the expected resignation, Colonel Pavlo Yelizarov, deputy commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, also submitted a resignation report. He directly tied his decision to Fedorov’s removal.
Yelizarov said that in the fifth year of the war he had submitted his resignation from the Armed Forces of Ukraine because he considered Mykhailo Fedorov’s removal a major blow to the country’s defense capacity.
As Ukrainska Pravda notes, Yelizarov was appointed deputy Air Force commander by Fedorov in January 2026. Fedorov himself became defense minister that same month. No formal announcement of his dismissal had been made, but the minister effectively confirmed his departure by writing on social media that it had been a great honor to serve the Ukrainian people in that role.
The resignation comes amid a broader government reshuffle in Ukraine. On July 14, the Verkhovna Rada approved the resignation of Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko. A new cabinet is expected to be announced on July 16. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has submitted the candidacy of Naftogaz head Serhiy Koretskyi for the post of prime minister.