‘Weapons, weapons, weapons.’ Ukraine’s new foreign minister reveals top priorities.

KYIV — Ukraine’s new Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has wasted no time in making his priorities clear.
“The number one task for Ukrainian diplomacy — from the ambassador to the attaché — is to ensure Ukraine’s defense capability. Weapons, weapons, weapons,” the new top diplomat said in a statement published Friday on Facebook.
“An undoubted priority is also the removal of all artificial restrictions on the supply of Western weapons and their use on the territory of the Russian Federation,” he added.
Sybiha was appointed Ukraine’s new foreign minister on Thursday by the national parliament, replacing Dmytro Kuleba, who had led the foreign ministry since 2020 but was ousted Wednesday as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began the biggest reshuffle of his government since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.
While Kuleba was likely replaced because of a clash with Zelenskyy’s powerful head of office, Andriy Yermak, his successor is unlikely to face that issue: Before being promoted to first deputy minister for foreign affairs in April, Sybiha was Yermak’s deputy. This means he’s probably considered as more of a team player by the president.
Forty-nine-year-old Sybiha also has strong diplomatic and foreign policy credentials. He previously served as Ukrainian ambassador to Turkey from 2016 to 2021, and also worked in the Ukrainian embassy in Poland as counselor-envoy from 2008-2012.
“Sybiha is a strong classical diplomat, he knows the system. He was an ambassador before and was working closely with partners since the start of the [Russian] invasion,” said a Ukrainian official close to Zelenskyy, granted anonymity to speak candidly about Sybiha.
Polish diplomats concur, describing Sybiha as “a man who keeps his word,” according to news agency PAP.  Sybiha was one of the politicians who made Polish-Ukrainian cooperation possible at the start of the Russian invasion. This resulted in, among other things, weapons deliveries.
Ukrainian parliamentarian Galyna Mykhailiuk said Sybiha is also fluent in English and Polish. “During his work in the above-mentioned institutions, he gained authority and respect from his colleagues,” Mykhailiuk said.
Sybiha has also said that joining the EU and NATO remain priorities of the Ukrainian government.
And he hinted at an overhaul of the Ukrainian diplomatic apparatus to “correspond to the new geopolitical realities.”
“At a recent meeting of ambassadors chaired by the president, a list of priority countries and regions where we will open new diplomatic institutions was agreed upon. There will be personnel changes — new ambassadors and consuls general will appear. There will be changes in the central apparatus aimed at strengthening the system,” Sybiha said.
During the parliament session where Sybiha was appointed, lawmakers also urged him to find better ways to communicate with Western countries, which have recently slowed the flow of aid to Ukraine, including the transfer of seized Russian assets.
MPs also expect Sybiha to improve consular services for Ukrainian refugees and citizens living abroad, to find a way to bring them home, and to win over China and other mostly Russia-leaning developing countries that Ukraine needs on board to make its peace plan a reality.