You're reading: Justice Minister: Appointment of Popov as Kyiv chief is legal

Justice Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Lavrynovych has said that the appointment of Oleksandr Popov as the head of Kyiv City State Administration to replace Leonid Chernovetsky does not contradict the law.

"According to the law, the president has the right to appoint the head of Kyiv City State Administration," he told reporters in Kyiv on Wednesday.

The minister said this decision does not lead to the obligatory re-election of Kyiv’s mayor.

"The constitution clearly defines the positions of the heads of city administrations of Sevastopol and Kyiv and representative agencies, as well as other officials," the justice minister noted.

As reported, on November 16, Ukraine’s President Viktor Yanukovych dismissed Mayor Leonid Chernovetsky as the head of Kyiv City State Administration and appointed Oleksandr Popov to this post.