Ukrainian parliament dismisses country's prime minister

MOSCOW

The Ukrainian parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, voted Wednesday to accept the resignation of the nation’s prime minister, Oleksiy Honcharuk, following criticism over his six-month tenure from President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

Some 353 members voted for Honcharuk's resignation at an extraordinary session in country's capital Kiev, summoned on the president's request.

In a speech to lawmakers before the vote, Zelenskiy criticized Honcharuk's cabinet for failing to meeting tax collection targets, a decline in manufacturing output and absence of pensions readjustment.

In accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine, the decision leads to the resignation of the entire government.

Right after the vote,