March for Fedorov reinstatement held in Kyiv as protests enter second month

People gathered in Kyiv on Aug. 16 for a protest march demanding the reinstatement of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, more than a month after his unexpected dismissal. At 7 p.m., a couple of thousand demonstrators assembled at Kyiv’s Arch of Freedom of the Ukrainian People, Kyiv Independent journalists on the ground reported.

The participants then marched along Khreshchatyk, Kyiv's main street, to Ivan Franko Square.

The march aims to "remind the president of the importance of dialogue between the authorities and society, as well as of the fact that the president himself must bear responsibility for the consequences of all questionable personnel decisions," said Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a war veteran and one of the protest's organizers.

Kozyatynskyi read out a petition that he urged participants to support. It called for reforms in the defense sector and the continuation of reforms launched under Fedorov.

Kozyatynskyi also criticized the appointment of Rustem Umerov as head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service despite having no relevant experience, as well as the appointment of Vitaliy Kim as veterans affairs minister despite lacking experience in veterans policy. He also stressed that Ukraine still had no appointed defense or foreign ministers.

"For a month now, the state administration has been without permanent leaders in key areas essential during wartime: a defense minister and a foreign minister. Nominating candidates for these positions is the exclusive responsibility of the president under Article 106 of Ukraine’s Constitution," the petition reads.

"With this appeal, we want to put it on record: responsibility for the consequences of all these disgraceful decisions lies solely with you, Volodymyr Zelensky, as president of Ukraine. Given the duration, scale, and, in particular, the risks involved in holding protests during a full-scale war, we as a society believe that we have done everything we could to make ourselves heard."

The petition was later handed to a representative of the President’s Office.

Fedorov, a popular ex-minister praised for his reforms and spearheading the expansion of Ukraine's drone capabilities, was fired by President Volodymyr Zelensky in a chaotic government reshuffle in mid-July.

Protesters have been rallying in Kyiv and other cities since then, demanding that Zelensky reinstate Fedorov.

The latest march takes place as the Ukrainian parliament is set to return from its summer recess on Aug. 18, with protesters waiting to see whether Zelensky will officially nominate acting Defense Minister Yevhen Khmara to the position.

Zelensky has yet to respond directly to the protesters' demands regarding Fedorov, leading to an impasse between the Presidential Office and the organizers.

The protests have lost some momentum in recent weeks — especially after Zelensky dismissed Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, which was one of the protesters' demands —  with later rallies drawing only a few hundred people.

Fedorov's future remains uncertain. The president said on July 21 he had offered the ex-minister "a prominent position in the government" focused on strengthening Ukraine's technological sector.

According to a person close to Zelensky, the proposal envisioned either making Fedorov a deputy prime minister for military innovations or appointing him to lead Ukroboronprom, Ukraine's state-owned defense conglomerate.

Fedorov has rejected those options, making clear that he wants to return only as defense minister.

Yevgeniya Doruda contributed reporting.