The streets of central Kyiv echoed with chants of "Shame" on Thursday 16 July as hundreds of protesters marched behind banners reading "The army is the priority". In the crowd, a woman carrying a child held a placard stating: "I don't want to die."

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed Fedorov, 35, after six months in the post as part of a wider government reshuffle that also saw parliament accept Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko's resignation and approve Serhii Koretskyi, former head of energy firm Naftogaz, as her successor. Fedorov, seen as a moderniser, had pushed drone innovation and reforms credited with slowing Russia's advance.

Zelenskyy gave no public reason for the dismissal, though unconfirmed reports pointed to tension with armed forces commander Oleksandr Syrskyi. Some officials, including a deputy air force commander, resigned in protest, while similar rallies were held in Dnipro and Odesa. It is Ukraine's fourth government reshuffle since Russia's 2022 invasion.