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to her, Zelenskiy should initiate this move along with other appointments at the nation's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada extraordinary session. "One of the first steps the new president should take in enacting his powers is to replace the chairman of the NBU, so as to change its policy as a result," news agency Interfax quoted Tymoshenko as saying on May 21, following consultations between the leaders of the parliamentary factions and the president regarding his decision to dissolve the Rada. Tymoshenko said the NBU and its policy over the past five years "have led the country to an extreme level of inflation, an unreasonable drop of the national currency, and absolutely unacceptable rates on loans for the business community and the economy."
The team of new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sees July 21 as the best date for holding snap parliamentary elections, presidential adviser Andriy Bohdan told reporters following Zelenskiy's meeting with the leadership of the Verkhovna Rada and its factions on May 21. Bohdan is a chief lawyer for Ukrainian controversial oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, who is widely considered to be Zelenskiy's mentor and sponsor. The businessman, former co-owner of PrivatBank, returned to Ukraine on May 16 from Israel, ending an absence that began in June 2017. On May 12, another former co-owner of PrivatBank, Gennady Bogolyubov, also returned to Ukraine from Israel. Zelenskiy announced the dissolution of the nation's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, immediately after he was sworn in on May 20. "I dissolve the Verkhovna Rada," Zelenskiy said in his address to the people of Ukraine after he took the oath in the parliament, however it was unclear immediately when Zelenskiy is going to sign a special presidential decree. Zelenskiy later met with top lawmakers and fracations representatives and struck a deal that cleared the way for the dissolution of parliament and early elections in July.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged the US to to step up anti-Russian sanctions. The new president appealed directly to the representatives of the US administration and US Congress who arrived in Kyiv to take part in the official ceremony of his inauguration on May 20. "The US is a powerful and serious partner for Ukraine, first of all, in overcoming the aggression of Russia. We will not be able to overcome Russian aggression in Donbas and Crimea alone," Zelenskiy's media office as saying on May 20. "Therefore, we need your help. I would like to urge you that the United States keeps increasing sanctions against the Russian Federation." The president added that he was ready to implement transparent, open and democratic reforms in Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has appointed Andriy Bohdan as head of the presidential staff that has unsettled some as Bohdan is also the chief lawyer for oligarch and Zelenskiy’s backer Ihor Kolomoisky. A special decree was signed by Zelenskiy late in the afternoon on May 20. Over the past months, Bohdan was Zelenskiy's legal adviser during his election campaign. Bohdan has long worked for the controversial oligarch Kolomoisky, who is widely considered to be Zelenskiy's mentor and sponsor.
Ukraine's President-elect Volodymyr Zelenskiy believes that there is only one thing that has left "in common" between Russia and Ukraine - the state border. "Today's reality is that after the annexation of Crimea and aggression in Donbas, there is only one thing that has left 'in common', this is the state border. Some 2,295 kilometres and 400 meters [of the border]. And Russia should return control over every millimetre from the Ukrainian side. Only then we can continue looking for 'the common'," Zelenskiy said in a statement published on May 2.
18 UKRAINE Country Report June 2019 www.intellinews.com