Ukrainian parliament confirms Yuliia Svyrydenko as new PM

The Ukrainian parliament confirmed Yuliia Svyrydenko as the country’s new prime minister on Thursday in a major government reshuffle initiated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. 

A former deputy prime minister and economic development minister, Svyrydenko had been widely rumored as a candidate for the prime minister’s post since summer 2024. She is a longtime ally of Zelenskyy and his powerful adviser Andriy Yermak, whose influence is expected to grow even further.

Svyrydenko succeeds Denys Shmyhal, Ukraine’s longest-serving prime minister, who will become the defense minister instead. The rest of the government will be unveiled over the course of Thursday. 

“Our government takes a course to self-sufficiency: military, economic, and social,” Svyrydenko wrote on social media after her confirmation. “War does not give us the right to hesitate. We must act quickly and decisively.”

Svyrydenko has been a driving force behind the Ukraine-U.S. mineral deal, a controversial economic partnership that gives America access to profits from the Eastern European country’s vast mineral resources.

She is also a familiar face to Brussels officials, having frequently led Ukraine’s talks with the EU and European capitals.

“We stand fully behind you as you fight for Ukraine’s survival and work for your country’s recovery and EU future,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote in her congratulatory message to Svyrydenko.