President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reported that he is currently determining the main candidates for the position of head of the President’s Office after the resignation of Andriy Yermak, and among the main candidates he named Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Deputy Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
“I held consultations… I have options – Minister Shmyhal or Minister Fedorov, but there is a challenge here – because the Rada must remove them before appointing… The President’s Office – is important, but there are other institutions. Who can replace Fedorov – I don’t know… maybe Mykhailo will find an alternative for himself. With the Ministry of Defense it is more difficult, because the entire budget is there, the responsibility is there, the army is there. Today – this is priority number one, Zelensky told journalists. The President added that potential candidates for the position also include Deputy Foreign Minister Serhiy Kyslytsia, Head of the Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense Kyrylo Budanov, and Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palis. Zelensky also did not rule out that the Presidential Office could temporarily operate without a head, and stressed the need for a thoughtful approach to the appointment. As previously reported, Andriy Yermak submitted his resignation on November 28, after which Zelensky announced the reboot of the Office, and also removed Yermak from the National Security Council and Defense of Ukraine and from the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
