President Volodymyr Zelensky’s party announced a slate of nine candidates for cabinet posts on Wednesday, marking the biggest shake-up in the government since the war against Russia started.According to The New York Times, weary and dust-covered rescuers were combing through the wreckage of a devastating missile strike in eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, searching for bodies. Meanwhile, in the west, Russia launched another deadly attack in the historic city of Lviv, killing seven people.

The latest Russian assault comes as President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine plans to make significant changes to his cabinet, the largest since the war began in 2022. Several senior officials have already resigned, with the speaker of Ukraine’s Parliament stating that this is an effort to bring “new energy” to the government as Russia escalates its attacks.

This shake-up comes at a critical moment for Ukraine, as Russian ground troops continue to launch heavy assaults near the transit hub of Pokrovsk and increase their airstrikes on Ukrainian towns and cities. At the same time, Ukrainian forces are trying to hold onto the territory they have seized inside western Russia.

Early on Wednesday, Russia launched missiles and drones towards cities and regions across Ukraine, resulting in the deaths of at least seven people and injuring dozens more in Lviv. The attack, near Ukraine’s western border, prompted neighboring Poland to put its air defenses on high alert.

In other developments:

– The strikes on Wednesday came just one day after a Russian missile attack on a military academy in Poltava, which officials say killed 51 people and injured 271 others. Rescue efforts are still ongoing to recover bodies and debris from the ruins of the attack, which is one of the deadliest in the 30-month-long war.

– The Russian military also bombarded the Kherson region in southern Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the head of the regional administration, Oleksandr Prokudin. The attacks targeted high-rise buildings and resulted in the deaths of three people.

– While the reshuffling of the Zelensky government is not expected to bring about major policy changes, some critics are concerned that it could further centralize power in the president’s office, depending on who fills the vacated positions.

– Notable figures who have offered their resignations include Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, who has been a key player in Ukraine’s efforts to secure Western weapons to combat the Russian invasion. Other resignations include those of the ministers of strategic industries, justice, and reintegration of temporarily occupied territories. 

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