The Verkhovna Rada is set to vote on the new Cabinet of Ministers today: two people from Mykolaiv are among the candidates for ministerial posts

The Verkhovna Rada, July 2016. Photo: Ruslan Stefanchuk, Facebook

The Verkhovna Rada is due to consider the appointment of the new Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine today, 16 July. Among the candidates for ministerial posts are officials from Mykolaiv — Vitalii Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration, and Ivan Vygivskyi, head of the National Police.

On the evening of 15 July, Olha Vasylevska-Smahliuk, a Member of Parliament and member of the Committee on Finance, Tax and Customs Policy, wrote about the provisional allocation of posts.

According to the information released, Vitalii Kim is being proposed for the post of Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, and Ivan Vyhivskyi for the post of Minister of Internal Affairs.

News that Vitalii Kim could become Ukraine’s new Minister for Veterans’ Affairs emerged yesterday. He has headed the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration since November 2020. He gained popularity among Ukrainians at the start of the full-scale invasion, becoming one of the most recognisable regional leaders in Ukraine thanks to his public communications during the Russian attacks.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vitaliy Kim in Mykolaiv in 2022. Photo: Office of the President

Prior to his appointment, he managed businesses in the private sector. According to a sociological survey conducted by SOCIS, as of January 2026 he ranked first among regional leaders in terms of the highest level of trust among Ukrainians.

Ivan Vyhivskyi, a likely candidate for the post of Minister of Internal Affairs, was born in the Zhytomyr region, but spent virtually his entire professional career — from detective to head of the Main Directorate of the National Police — in Mykolaiv.

In 2025, Vyhivskyi was awarded the special rank of second-class police general. Photo: Office of the President

He began his service in the internal affairs agencies in 1999 as an investigator at the Ochakiv City and District Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine in the Mykolaiv region. In 2003, he graduated from the National University of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. From 2015 to 2016, he served as head of the Ochakiv Police Department of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Mykolaiv region. From 2016, he held the post of deputy head of the Main Directorate — head of the Investigative Department of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Mykolaiv region. In 2021, he became Head of the National Police.

Furthermore, according to Vasylevska-Smahliuk, the new government may also include:

• Vsevolod Chentsov – Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration;

• Denys Maslov — Minister of Justice;

• Vitalii Bezhin — Minister for Communities and Territories;

• Mykola Kalashnyk — Minister for Infrastructure and Reconstruction;

• Ihor Klymenko — Minister of Defence.

However, according to RBC-Ukraine, no position could be found in the government for the incumbent Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, although Volodymyr Zelenskyy had promised that Fedorov would remain in the team, without providing any further details. Mykhailo Fedorov himself confirmed yesterday evening that he is stepping down as head of the Ministry of Defence. He recalled that during his time in office, the team had managed to disable the Russians’ Starlink system, invest in mid-strike capabilities and weaponry, and launch the «Logistical Lockdown».