KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced her resignation Sunday, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed sweeping changes to the country’s government.
Taking to social media, Svyrydenko expressed pride in her service, writing that she was “proud to have had the honor of leading the government during one of the most difficult periods in Ukraine’s modern history.” She noted that she and Zelenskyy had spoken about her “next steps,” though she offered no specifics on what comes next.
“I remain ready to serve the Ukrainian state and carry out every task aimed at strengthening Ukraine’s position, defending our national interests and bringing a just peace closer,” Svyrydenko wrote.
Svyrydenko, who previously served as Ukraine’s economy minister, was appointed prime minister in July 2025 at age 39. She had been credited with playing a central role in securing a minerals agreement between Ukraine and the United States — a deal viewed as a key mechanism for aligning American interests with Ukraine’s security needs.
In announcing her departure, Zelenskyy said Ukraine was “changing its political strategy.” He also indicated he had extended an offer to Svyrydenko to take charge of “a new, important area” in Ukraine’s relationship with a major international partner.
Zelenskyy described the broader restructuring, saying, “Each priority area of foreign policy will be assigned to a specific person with substantial experience who is capable of implementing what we agree on at the leaders’ level and what the Ukrainian people expect.” He added that changes would also be coming to the upper ranks of Ukraine’s law enforcement agencies.
On the battlefield, a Ukrainian military strike in southwestern Russia left one person dead and three others wounded, including a child, according to local Russian officials on Sunday. The governor of Russia’s Samara region said residential homes, apartment buildings, and an unidentified “industrial site” were damaged in the attack.
Russian media reported that the strike targeted the Syzran Oil Refinery in the Samara region — a facility owned by energy giant Rosneft located roughly 800 kilometers, or about 500 miles, east of the Ukrainian border. Photographs circulating in Russian media appeared to show thick black smoke rising from the site. The refinery has been struck by Ukrainian forces on multiple previous occasions.
Separately, the governor of Russia’s Rostov region reported that a drone attack damaged a tanker in the Azov-Black Sea maritime canal. Officials said the vessel was empty and that there is no risk of an oil spill.
Ukraine’s ongoing campaign of drone strikes against Russian oil facilities and other infrastructure has contributed to a significant fuel shortage across multiple Russian regions, with motorists reportedly waiting hours to fill their tanks and rationing measures in place. Russia has responded by stepping up missile and drone attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities, highlighting Ukraine’s continued vulnerability to ballistic missile strikes.
Zelenskyy has framed the strikes on Russian energy infrastructure as part of what he calls a campaign of “long-range sanctions” — a direct response to Moscow’s refusal to end its four-year invasion of Ukraine.
In a separate development, Russia’s Ministry of Defense claimed Sunday that it had struck the Ukrainian ports of Odesa and Chornomorsk in the Odesa region. Ukrainian officials had not yet responded to those claims.
