CABINET OF MINISTERS OF UKRAINE

The 'Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine' is the highest body in the system of state executive power of Ukraine, i.e., the cabinet of government. The Cabinet is responsible to the President of Ukraine and is under the control of and accountable to the Verkhovna Rada (parliament). It is composed of the Prime Minister, the First Vice Prime Minister, three Vice Prime Ministers and Ministers.

Contents

Appointment and dismissal

Authority

Composition

See also

External links

Appointment and dismissal

Before the constitutional reform adopted in late 2004 that took effect on January 1, 2006, the Prime Minister was nominated by the President and approved by the parliament. Subsequently, the rest of Cabinet was appointed by the President, formally upon the Prime Minister's nomination, while in reality the entire cabinet was often picked by the President himself.
After the reform, the parliament has the authority to both nominate and approve the Prime Minister. The candidate is proposed by the parliamentary coalition to the President and the latter submits an official nomination back to Verkhovna Rada for a formal approval vote. While the official nomination of the candidate for the parliamentary approval is still made by the President, the Head of the State, formally, takes no part in the nominee's selection and there is an ambiguity whether the President may turn down the candidate suggested by the parliamentary coalition.
The Prime Minister, following his appointment, nominates other members of the Cabinet (ministers) for approval by the Verkhovna Rada, except the Ministers of the Foreign Affairs and of Defense, who are nominated by the President.
The Prime Minister and his Cabinet could now be dismissed only by the Parliament while formerly the President could dismiss the entire cabinet unilaterally at any time.
Members of the Cabinet and chief officers of central and local bodies of executive power may not combine their official activity with other work, except teaching, scholarly and creative activity outside of working hours, or to be members of an administrative body or board of supervisors of an enterprise that is aimed at making profit.

Authority

The Cabinet issues resolutions and orders that are mandatory for execution. Normative legal acts of the Cabinet, ministries and other central bodies of executive power, are subject to registration. Failure to register invalidates the act.

Composition

The current Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has been appointed on August 4, 2006 (announcement):

★ Prime Minister - Viktor Yanukovych

★ First Vice Prime Minister, Finance Minister - Mykola Azarov

★ Vice Prime Minister, Minister of Building, Architecture and Housing and Communal Services - Volodymyr Rybak

★ Vice Prime Minister - Andriy Klyuev

★ Vice Prime Minister - Dmytro Tabachnyk

★ Vice Prime Minister - Volodymyr Radchenko

★ Minister of Internal Affairs - Vasyl Tsushko

★ Minister for Foreign Affairs - Borys Tarasyuk (dismissed on December 1, 2006) (Yushchenko issued a decree that Tarasyuk must keep his job, despite a court order and a presidential decree, he was not allowed to enter cabinet meetings. Tarasyuk resigned at the end of january 2007) then Arseniy Yatsenyuk

★ Minister of Coal Industry - Serhiy Tulub

★ Minister of Culture - Yuriy Bohutsky

★ Minister of Defense - Anatoliy Hrytsenko

★ Minister of Economy - Volodymyr Makukha then Anatoliy Kinakh

★ Minister of Education and Science - Stanislav Nikolaenko

★ Fuel and Energy Minister - Yuriy Boyko

★ Minister of Labor and Social Policy - Mykhailo Papiev

★ Health Minister - Yuriy Polyachenko

★ Minister of Agrarian Policy - Yuriy Melnyk

★ Minister of Industrial Policy - Anatoliy Holovko

★ Minister of Environmental Protection - Vasyl Dzharty

★ Minister of Transport and Communications - Mykola Rudkovsky

★ Minister of Emergencies - Nestor Shufrych

★ Minister for Family, Youth and Sport - Viktor Korzh

★ Minister of Justice - Oleksander Lavrynovich

★ Minister in connections with Verkhovna Rada and other state authorities - Ivan Tkalenko

★ Minister of the Cabinet of Ministers - Anatoliy Tolstoukhov

See also

External links

★ Governmental Portal of Ukraine - official site of the Cabinet of Ministers

★ CNN World: Yanukovych named new Ukraine PM, August 4, 2006

★ BBC News: Ukraine leader sacks government, September 8, 2005