Ukraine parliament approves energy chief Koretskyi as PM

Ukraine's parliament approved energy executive Sergii Koretskyi as the country's new prime minister on Thursday, July 16, 2026, as part of a major government reshuffle by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The 48-year-old, who has no prior political experience, secured 289 votes in the Verkhovna Rada, becoming Ukraine's third wartime prime minister since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022.

Koretskyi's appointment follows the dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, a popular figure credited with pushing for innovative drone warfare and improving battlefield conditions. Fedorov, who served for six months, was fired earlier on Thursday. Lawmaker Oleksandr Merezhko, from Zelenskyy's party, said the 35-year-old minister was dismissed due to clashes with traditional military generals and his controversial reforms on military conscription. Fedorov told reporters he was proud of his team's accomplishments and had turned down job offers from tech leaders. The president is expected to nominate Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, a former police general, as Fedorov's replacement.

An engineer and economist by training, Koretskyi brings over two decades of experience in Ukraine's...