Mr Yatsenyuk made his decision public via a televised address on Sunday, saying he would submit his resignation to parliament.
Advertisement
The resignation came two months after Yatsenyuk’s government nearly narrowly dodged a no-confidence vote, which provoked various political parties to leave the ruling parliamentary coalition.
In recent weeks, protesters have held rallies outside the parliament in the capital, Kiev, calling for the resignation of Yatsenyuk over what they perceive to be his government’s failure to fight graft.
Prior to the document leak, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko’s “Fatherland” party announced it would officially join the opposition after having left the coalition earlier.
International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said days after the vote that she could not see how lending to Ukraine could continue with the government in such a state of disarray.
Jaresko said in March that she was ready to head the government under strict conditions that would give her the freedom to fight the decades-long links between politicians and a handful of powerful tycoons.
He said he will ask lawmakers to approve his resignation on Tuesday.
In his speech, Yatseniuk said his party was committed to the coalition and appeared to hand over the reins of government to Groysman. It’s unclear if he’ll still be involved in government.
The withdrawal deprived the coalition of its majority in the Ukrainian parliament.
Although Yatsenyuk developed a more professional police force and closed some banks accused of corruption, he was hampered by a military insurgency, supported by neighboring Russian Federation, and Ukraine’s ongoing economic hardship.
Advertisement
Analysts believe that he will probably take Jaresko’s place.
