Zelensky nominates Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy for Prime Minister of Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today nominated Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Development and Trade Yulia Sviridenko as Prime Minister.

The nomination, which requires parliamentary approval, comes at a time when diplomatic efforts to end the war, now in its fourth year, have stalled and Ukraine is struggling to revive its financially strapped economy and build up a domestic arms industry.

This year, after a public clash between US President Donald Trump and Zelensky in Washington, Sviridenko (39) brokered an agreement between Ukraine and the US on the joint exploitation of rare earths for mutual benefit.

Sviridenko, who championed that vital economic agreement, is a prominent part of a generation of young Ukrainian politicians leading their country through wartime unrest.

Zelensky announced that the change at the head of the government is the beginning of a "deep reconstruction" and that he is "eagerly awaiting the new government's action plan."

He announced that he and Sviridenko discussed measures to boost Ukraine's economic potential, expand citizen support programs, and increase domestic weapons production today.

The current Prime Minister, Denis Shmyhal, has been in office since March 2020 and is the longest-serving Prime Minister in Ukraine.

The announcement of the replacement at the head of the government came after Zelensky's meeting with Šmihal, at which they agreed to rationalize state administration and redirect maximum resources to the country's defense.

For Sviridenko to become prime minister, Prime Minister Shmyhal must submit his resignation to parliament, which must then vote on it. Parliament is due to convene this week, and Zelensky's Servant of the People party controls a majority of seats, so his nomination of Sviridenko is expected to be accepted with little resistance.

Sviridenko has experience as an economist and has held several positions in the government, including being deputy chief of staff to the president.

Timofey Milovanov, a former economy minister who worked with Sviridenko and is now a professor at the Kiev School of Economics, said that Sviridenko has a "balanced approach to politics" and avoids conflict.

"She is professional and always remains calm," he added, describing her briefly: "Young, smart, determined."

In rare public appearances, Sviridenko speaks quietly but deliberately at breakneck speed, both in Ukrainian and English.

She also moved quickly through government positions after graduating with honors from the National University of Trade and Economics and briefly working in the private sector.

She held various positions in her native Chernihiv region, bordering Russia, before being appointed deputy chief of staff by presidential decree in 2020, and just a year later she became deputy prime minister and minister of economy.

Ukrainian media reported that Sviridenko had long had political ambitions, but it was said that Zelensky had blocked her previous attempts to become prime minister, believing that she would be better suited for the role only after the war.

Sviridenko previously said that civil service has been a part of her life since childhood because both of her parents worked in the government.

"I saw how dedicated they were to serving the community, how our hometown and its progress were their core values," she recently told Ukrainian media.