“Change cannot be left behind”: who could become the new prime minister after Shmyhal’s resignation
5 March 2024 12:50
EXCLUSIVE
For several days now, there has been talk on the sidelines of parliament about significant changes in the Ukrainian government: there is talk of the resignation of the current Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and a large-scale reduction in ministries. Although these rumours were previously called the “Russian IPSO”, today the Prime Minister has officially stated that the cuts are unavoidable. What to expect and whether the government will really be radically changed – read in the article by Kommersant Ukrainian 
.
Yesterday, Shmyhal said that as part of the government reform, the number of ministries is to be reduced by a third.
“We are working on changing the format of the government. In particular, we are reducing the number of ministries. We want to reduce the number of ministries by a third, reduce the number of civil servants,”
– the Prime Minister said.
The Prime Minister also noted that the government is working on the creation of a Government Centre, where auxiliary and administrative functions will be concentrated.
According to sources in the Servant of the People faction, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy and the Ministry of Youth and Sports may be cut.
Political analyst Ihor Reiterovych told Kommersant Ukrainsky noted that logically, if such a restructuring takes place, the leadership is often changed, in this case, the Cabinet of Ministers.
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Last summer, the Ukrainian media predicted changes in the Government. One of the likely candidates was Oksana Markarova, the current Ukrainian ambassador to the United States.
According to MP Mykhailo Tsymbalyuk, Markarova is unlikely to replace Shmyhal as prime minister.
“Markarova is unlikely, because today the American section is very responsible, and after all these events (the break in the vote on US aid to Ukraine – ed.), some people accuse that this is a failure of the embassies, among others,”
– Tsymbalyuk believes.
In his opinion, on the sidelines of the parliament, “bets” are being made on Yulia Svyrydenko (First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Economy of Ukraine – ed.)
“She is actually acting Prime Minister, communicating with international partners. Svyrydenko has experience, has worked in the Presidential Administration, and speaks several foreign languages. It makes sense,”
– Tsymbalyuk told journalists.
But political analyst Ruslan Bortnik believes that other political figures have some chances.
“Yes, the most likely candidates are Yulia Svyrydenko and Oksana Markarova. Rostyslav Shurma, Mykhailo Fedorov and Oleksandr Kamyshyn also have a chance. The President sets the candidates the task of increasing support from our Western partners, which is difficult for them to guarantee.”
What ministries may no longer exist in Ukraine
According to Ruslan Bortnik, the reduction in the number of ministries is primarily related to the financial side and the attempt to reduce public spending on financing the government.
“The Ministry of Veterans’ Affairs and the Ministry of Social Policy are facing a big threat. The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economy may also be merged. The Ministry of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories has exhausted its potential. The Ministry of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources may merge with the Ministry of Energy. It is also possible that the Ministry of Health will merge with the Ministry of Social Policy,”
– bortnik summed up and suggested that the current government as a whole could be cut in half.
Meanwhile, Mykhailo Tsymbalyuk expressed concern that the government rotation could turn out to be “reforms for the sake of reforms”:
“I will emphasise once again: the fact that Shmyhal said that vacancies were reduced, it was actually a reduction in the number of officials. I don’t know what it will do… I think we need a public discussion and a discussion in the session hall.”
Crisis of votes in parliament
Ukrainian MP Yulia Klymenko believes that the Verkhovna Rada will not have the votes to form a new government and change the Prime Minister.
“I don’t see the votes to appoint a new government, regardless of who it will be. So far, this is not being discussed openly and seriously. I don’t see any candidates for prime minister either. Perhaps the situation will change depending on who the new head of government is,”
– klymenko said.
In her opinion, the problem of the current government is not the number of ministries, but the staff:
“The issue is solely in the staffing, no one wants to go to the civil service. The number of ministries can be reduced or increased, but the procedures for reducing and dividing ministries take at least 6 months and are significant budgetary expenditures. We do not have the capacity to do this now. We all need to focus on winning, not moving beds.”
Author: Alyona Kaplina
