Protests erupt in Kyiv after Zelenskyy ousts defense chief Fedorov

Protesters gathered in Kyiv after Volodymyr Zelenskyy removed Mykhailo Fedorov, the 35-year-old defense minister who expanded Ukraine’s drone warfare and pushed military reform. Street demonstrations broke out in the capital and in other cities while senior figures inside the security establishment began to resign.

Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko resigned, and the Verkhovna Rada approved a new government. Fedorov had held the defense post for only about six or seven months, after taking over in January 2026. Earlier in his career, he served as minister for digital transformation, and he was the youngest defense minister in Ukraine’s history.

Crowds in central Kyiv numbered in the several hundreds, with some counts rising above 1,000, and similar protests took place in Lviv, Kharkiv, Dnipro and Odesa. Demonstrators chanted “Bring Fedorov back” as they expressed anger over a decision they saw as weakening Ukraine’s military at a moment when the country remains under heavy Russian pressure.

Deputy Air Force Commander Pavlo Yelizarov resigned. Lawmakers and activists also condemned the move, with criticism focused on the breakdown in relations between Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. Those tensions centered on military reforms, mobilization reform and the control of the defense ministry, all of them sensitive issues as Ukraine struggles to keep its ranks filled.

Fedorov said he would continue the mission of defeating the enemy through “asymmetry, speed of innovation, and organizational strength.” He also pointed to drone production, after-action review reforms and efforts to deny Russian forces access to Starlink for drone warfare. Ukraine faces manpower shortages and gaps in air defense while Russian missile strikes continue to punish cities and front-line logistics.