Ukraine’s Parliament blocks Zelensky’s pick for energy minister
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Mr Denys Shmyhal served as prime minister, then defence chief, and was earmarked by the President to be the energy minister.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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- Ukrainian lawmakers rejected Denys Shmyhal as energy minister, a rare rebuke for President Zelensky amid a government reshuffle.
- Shmyhal, previously prime minister and later defence chief, was nominated to fix the energy sector plagued by corruption and Russian attacks.
- The vote failed with only 210 in favour, and opposition parties abstaining, citing potential disruption during wartime; source: REUTERS.
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KYIV – Ukrainian lawmakers on Jan 13 failed to approve outgoing defence chief Denys Shmyhal as energy minister, a rare rebuke of President Volodymyr Zelensky as he attempts to shake up key sectors at a critical moment in the war with Russia.
Mr Shmyhal, who served as prime minister for five years until he was shifted to the Defence Ministry in 2025, had been tapped by Mr Zelensky to steer an energy sector hobbled by corruption allegations and Russian attacks on infrastructure.
The last permanent energy minister was fired in 2025
Mr Shmyhal’s appointment failed to receive the necessary 226 votes, with 210 lawmakers voting in favour and three opposition parties abstaining.
He had been proposed for the job as part of a wide-ranging government reshuffle, with Kyiv facing mounting Russian pressure as the fourth anniversary of Moscow’s invasion approaches in February.
Before the Jan 13 session, during which lawmakers were also expected to tap Ukraine’s digital chief to lead the Defence Ministry, some opposition lawmakers had criticised the wartime reshuffle.
Ms Solomiia Bobrovska, a member of the liberal opposition Holos party who sits on Parliament’s national defence committee, said replacing Mr Shmyhal could be disruptive for a ministry that still needed to “build up its own strength”. Holos was among parties that abstained. REUTERS
