Ukraine’s president relieves 3 governors of their duties

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued decrees Wednesday dismissing three regional governors.

Luhansk Governor Serhiy Haidai, Odesa Governor Maksym Marchenko and Khmelnytskyi Governor Serhiy Hamaliy were relieved of their duties, according to a statement from the Ukrainian Presidency.

No reasons were given for the move or who will be replacing them.

A number of Ukrainian officials have either stepped down or have been relieved of their duties since Jan. 24 after Zelenskyy declared that he would reshuffle officials at various levels in ministries and central and local administrative bodies as well as in law enforcement to build "a strong state."

Since then, the governors of Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson and Sumy have been dismissed.

Ukraine has long suffered endemic corruption, but Russia's "special military operation" is said to have overshadowed the government's efforts to stamp out graft.