IMF reacts to Danyliuk's dismissal as Ukraine's finance minister

Director of the IMF Communications Department Gerry Rice said this at a briefing in Washington on Thursday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"We do not comment on personalities, on internal personnel issues, but we have expressed concern about possible changes in the institutional role of the [Ukrainian] Finance Ministry," he said.

At the same time, he added: "The Finance Ministry should retain, in our view, its central and crucial role in fiscal policy."

Rice also recalled that Oleksandr Danyliuk, as Ukrainian finance minister, had directly participated in negotiations with the International Monetary Fund and had been a "strong supporter of the reforms".

As reported, on June 7, the Verkhovna Rada supported the government's draft resolution on Danyliuk's dismissal as finance minister.

A total of 254 MPs voted for this decision. Danyliuk pointed to political pressure on him and criticized the reform process at the State Fiscal Service.