People in Kyiv take to streets to protest against resignation of Mykhailo Fedorov. What do signs say?

Following the announcement of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov’s resignation, protests broke out in Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine. People are demanding that the decision to dismiss him be reconsidered and are calling for the Ministry of Defense to stay the course on reforms.

This is according to a Ukrainian News agency's correspondent reporting from the scene.

In the capital, the protest is taking place in the park near the Ivan Franko National Academic Drama Theater. Hundreds of people have gathered there.

Protesters are chanting “Fedorov” and holding signs reading: “Why?”, “Reforms must continue,” “Don’t mess with what works,” “Vova, what are you doing?”, and “Drones should fight, not people.” 

The protests are ongoing, and participants are calling on the authorities to reconsider the decision to dismiss Mykhailo Fedorov. There are also calls to replace Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi.

In addition to Kyiv, rallies in support of Fedorov are taking place in Kharkiv, Dnipro, Mykolaiv, Poltava, Rivne, Zhytomyr, Lutsk, and Ternopil.

As a reminder, the day before, Mykhailo Fedorov announced his resignation as defense minister. This decision sparked a widespread reaction among public figures, volunteers, and representatives of the military community.

In particular, blogger and volunteer Serhii Sternenko stated that Fedorov’s dismissal would have a negative impact on the country.

According to Ukrainian Pravda, Volodymyr Zelenskyy decided to dismiss Mykhailo Fedorov from the post of defense minister due to a long-standing conflict between him and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi. According to sources, this was one of the key factors behind the personnel decision.