The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has allocated UAH 6 billion from the state budget reserve fund to implement measures related to strengthening the country’s defense capabilities.
According to Government Order No. 1135 of October 18, the funds have been allocated for measures related to strengthening the country’s defense capabilities and preventing man-made emergencies, in particular for the construction of protective structures for critical infrastructure facilities in the fuel and energy sector, the railway transport subsector of the transport and postal sector (protection of traction substations with a primary voltage level of 150 (110) kV) and the critical infrastructure life support systems sector (heat energy supply, water supply, and water disposal).
The Ministry of Community and Territorial Development (for the joint-stock company Ukrainian Railways) has been allocated UAH 800.5 million; regional state administrations (for regional military administrations) — UAH 5.2 billion.
As previously reported, the funds will be used to strengthen energy, transport, and vital systems — from generators and battery stations to the construction of engineering protection, which will allow for faster construction of protective structures, rapid restoration of damaged facilities, and ensure the uninterrupted operation of the energy sector.
The Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers will grant internally displaced persons who have worked continuously for six months an additional one-time payment of UAH 2,000 for living expenses, Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced.
“Support for the employment of internally displaced persons. The government will grant internally displaced persons who have worked continuously for six months an additional one-time payment of UAH 2,000 for living expenses,” Svyrydenko wrote on a Telegram channel after a government meeting on Wednesday.
In addition, it is noted that internally displaced persons who are recipients of social benefits or housing allowances throughout Ukraine and have not received funds from international organizations will also be able to purchase solid fuels for the winter in the frontline areas.
“The average amount of payments will reach UAH 8,000. A total of 32,000 households are eligible for additional support. The payments will be made by the Pension Fund of Ukraine after the payments from international organizations are completed in November-December,” the prime minister said.
The Verkhovna Rada, at the suggestion of newly appointed Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko, approved the new lineup of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine.
The appointment of government members was voted on at a plenary session on Thursday, which was held as a package (except for the Minister of Defense and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, whose candidates are nominated by the president), with 253 MPs voting in favor.
The online broadcast of the Ukrainian parliament session on YouTube is being conducted by MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak (Voice faction).
In particular, Mykhailo Fedorov was promoted to First Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine – Minister of Digital Transformation (previously Deputy Prime Minister for Innovation, Education, Science and Technology – Minister of Digital Transformation).
The new Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration is former Deputy Minister of Economy and Trade Representative of Ukraine Taras Kachka.
The head of the large combined Ministry of Economy, Environment, and Agriculture is now Oleksiy Sobolev, former first deputy minister of economy of Ukraine (previously, the position of minister of economy was held by Svyrydenko, minister of environmental protection by Svitlana Grynychuk, and minister of agrarian policy by Vitaliy Koval). – Vitaliy Koval).
Another new official is former First Deputy Minister of Finance Denys Ulyutin, who heads the merged Ministry of Social Policy, Family, and Unity of Ukraine (previously, the position of Minister of Social Policy was held by Oksana Zholnovich, and Minister of National Unity – Oleksiy Chernyshov).
There are also several officials who remained in the new Cabinet but in new positions, including Herman Galushchenko, who became Minister of Justice (previously Minister of Energy), and Svitlana Grinchuk, who became Minister of Energy (previously Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources).
In addition, Deputy Prime Minister for Recovery, Minister of Community and Territorial Development Oleksiy Kuleba, Minister of Youth and Sports Matviy Bedny, Minister for Veterans Affairs Nataliya Kalmykova, Minister of Internal Affairs Ihor Klymenko, Minister of Education and Science Oksen Lisovyi, Minister of Health Viktor Lyashko, and Minister of Finance Serhiy Marchenko retained their positions from the previous government.
In addition, on Thursday, Denys Shmyhal is to be appointed Minister of Defense, who will also oversee strategic industries (he previously held the post of Prime Minister), and Andriy Sybiga is to be reappointed Minister of Foreign Affairs.
At the same time, the Rada did not appoint a new Minister of Culture today because, as previously stated by the head of the ruling Servant of the People faction, Davyd Arakhamia, consultations on candidates are still ongoing.
Thus, the following positions in the new government were not filled: former Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine – Minister of Justice of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna (the president appointed her as the special representative of the president of Ukraine for the development of cooperation with the US, while her candidacy for the post of ambassador to the US is being agreed upon) former Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of National Unity of Ukraine Oleksiy Chernyshov, former Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers Oleg Nemchinov, former Minister of Social Policy Oksana Zholnovich, former Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Vitaliy Koval (may return to the post of head of the State Property Fund of Ukraine), former Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications Mykola Tochitsky (may become Ukraine’s permanent representative to the Council of Europe), former Minister of Strategic Industries German Smetanin (will head Ukroboronprom) and former Minister of Defense of
Ukraine Rustem Umerov (is being considered for appointment as Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council).
On April 28, 2025, federal elections were held in Canada, resulting in a victory for the Liberal Party led by Mark Carney, which won 155 seats in the House of Commons out of 343. However, this is not enough to form a majority, which requires 172 seats, meaning that a minority government will have to be formed or coalition agreements sought. Distribution of seats by party
Party Leader Seats Change
Liberal Party Mark Carney 155 +3
Conservative Party Pierre Poilievre 133 +13
Bloc Québécois Yves-François Blanchet 21 -11
New Democratic Party Jagmeet Singh 5 -20
Green Party Elizabeth May and Jonathan Pedne 1 -1
Independents and others 28 —
Possible scenarios for forming a government
Given the results, the Liberal Party does not have an absolute majority and must seek support from other parties to form a stable government. Possible options:
Minority government: The Liberals may try to govern without a formal coalition agreement, securing the support of other parties on key issues.
Coalition with the New Democratic Party: Despite significant losses, the NDP could become a partner of the Liberals, as has happened in the past.
Cooperation with the Bloc Québécois: Although the Bloc Québécois lost some seats, its support could be critical for the Liberals, especially on issues related to Quebec.
Implications for the opposition
The Conservative Party, led by Pierre Poilievre, improved its position, winning 133 seats, but this was not enough to secure victory. Poilievre also lost his seat in the Carleton riding, which could affect his leadership of the party.
The New Democratic Party suffered significant losses, reducing its representation to five seats. Party leader Jagmeet Singh announced his resignation after losing in his riding.
The election took place against a backdrop of heightened tensions with the US, particularly after President Donald Trump’s statements about the possible annexation of Canada as the 51st state. Mark Carney strongly criticized Trump, stressing the need to protect Canadian sovereignty and strengthen national unity.
International leaders, including representatives from the UK, the EU, Ukraine, and China, congratulated Carney on his victory and expressed hope for stronger cooperation in trade, defense, and democratic values.
Earlier, the Experts Club think tank released a video analysis dedicated to the most important elections in the world in 2025. For more details, see here —
https://youtu.be/u1NMbFCCRx0?si=K4EMR3-a5cYQM_Ab
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the government will soon launch contracts for the recruitment of 18-24 year olds into the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
“Next week, the government intends to launch lucrative recruitment contracts to attract young people aged 18-24 – up to draft age – to the Armed Forces to help eliminate labor shortages,” he told Reuters.
However, Zelensky declined to say how many men are expected to sign up.
As reported, the special representative of US President-elect Donald Trump, Mike Volz, believes that to stabilize the front in Ukraine it is necessary to lower the mobilization age, which would allow to call into the army “hundreds of thousands of new soldiers”.
Earlier, Zelensky commented on the discussion on lowering the mobilization age in Ukraine, pointing to the understaffing of Ukrainian brigades and the lack of weapons.
The government has appointed Stanislav Banchuk as acting director of the state enterprise of alcohol and liquor industry “Ukrspirt”, according to the official website of the government.
“To agree with the proposal of the State Property Fund on the appointment of Stanislav Yaroslavovich Banchuk as acting Director of the state enterprise of alcohol and distillery industry “Ukrspirt”, – noted in the order of the Cabinet of Ministers № 386 from April 30.
On the website of the FGI and Facebook-page “Ukrspirt” so far there is no additional information about the new head. According to information on the Internet, a person with the same surname and initials was the deputy regional prosecutor of Chernivtsi region until 2014, after which he ran an individual law practice in Kyiv region.
According to Youcontrol, Banchuk S.Y. is the founder of a number of companies, in particular, Law Company Standard LLC, Gaztehkom LLC, Newest Energy Systems LLC, Trading House P.E.G.O., VOGA Resources LLC and SpetsOil LLC, which specialize in oil and gas trading.
