Historically, Ukrainian society usually takes to the streets to protest. Today, the crowds gathering on squares across the country are doing something entirely different: they are standing up for former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
However, people are not there just to support one person. This is not only about Fedorov and his team butabout Ukraine gaining momentum in stopping the aggressor and moving forward. It's also about the future and innovation, more than outdated mechanisms and control.
Since the evening of July 15, when it became public that Fedorov was losing his position, social networks have been flooded with calls to keep him in the government and comments criticising the government for making a huge mistake. Entrepreneurs, military personnel, activists, volunteers, and others have publicly come to Fedorov's defence.
Oleksandra Matviichuk, a prominent Ukrainian human-rights defender and head of the Center for Civil Liberties, which was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022.
The Parliament has a chance to demonstrate its subjectivity. You can't touch what works.
Valerii Pekar, Ukrainian entrepreneur, public intellectual, educator and civic activist.
I urge the people's deputies not to support the candidate for the Minister of Defence who is from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the candidate for the Minister of Veterans who is not a veteran.
Mykhailo Tkach, an investigative journalist, is known for exposing corruption and abuses of power in Ukraine.
The president's dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov from the position of Minister of Defence without any explanation to the public is yet another example of irresponsible governance. Unfortunately, there have been many such examples. Absolute and unlimited power has not led and will not lead to self-improvement for those who until recently were building a dynasty in every sense of the word.
On the morning of July 16, people in various cities across Ukraine took to the streets to protest Mykhailo Fedorov's resignation. The air is filled with the rhythmic chanting of "Bring back Fedorov!" and "Shame!" aimed at the government. People are arriving by the hundreds, holding hastily hand-painted cardboard signs that read: "Reforms must continue", "It works, do not touch it" and "The enemy is celebrating. What about you?" Protestants are gathering in Kyiv, Lviv, Dnipro, Odesa, Cherkasy, Vinnytsia...
This is a raw, organic movement of the very civil society that has carried this war on its shoulders since day one.
Over the past few years, Ukrainian society has been observing the actions of Mykhailo Fedorov, he has become the face of a new Ukrainian statehood, which becomes faster, more digital and results-oriented.
While serving as a Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation, he was associated with digital transformation and the Diia app.
Mykhailo's involvement with the Ministry of Defence has led to associations with technological changes and breakthroughs in military operations.
In a short period, Fedorov's team scaled up drone production and procurement, reformed the defence procurement system, launched new funding mechanisms for Ukrainian defence-tech companies, and integrated artificial intelligence into military development.
Ukraine began producing new types of long-range weapons, worked on its own ballistic missile program, and expanded cooperation with Western partners on modern air defence systems and combat aircraft.
This step from the consumer or recipient of the aid to an active actor that creates solutions,
Ukrainian society associates with Fedorov and his team.
It is also about what kind of nation we are building in the midst of war and how we intend to win.
Soldiers and civilians alike know the cost of waiting for supplies, for international support. Ukraine cannot afford to fight the way Russia does, as it does not have this enormous stockpile and resources for the war, so Kyiv should outsmart the Kremlin. Technological innovations are no longer a separate aspect of defence policy - they have become its foundation.
Ukraine's path to stopping the war cannot rely solely on our partners' weapons supplies, our chance to prevail lies in our own domestic technological superiority.
After the war, defence technologies, artificial intelligence, robotics, and military developments may become one of Ukraine's strongest export sectors.
This is not the first time the Ukrainian government has faced united public resistance. During the first "Cardboard" protests in July 2025, a massive wave of peaceful, creative demonstrations forced the government to reverse its stance on anti-corruption reforms completely.
Today's reaction to Fedorov's dismissal may become a similar moment. The issue is no longer whether one minister keeps his job. It is whether Ukraine's leadership is willing to recognise a clear public signal that many citizens see technological innovation as one of the country's most valuable wartime assets.
Ukraine again demonstrates unity in wartime democracy and proves that society is a force that cannot be ignored.
Ukrainian democracy has always operated differently from most post-Soviet states. From Cossack councils and city assemblies to the Maidan protests, Ukrainian political culture is based on the belief that society has the right to tell the authorities: "You made a mistake, correct yourselves".
This publication was compiled with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation. It's content is the exclusive responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily reflect the views of the International Renaissance Foundation.
