Zelensky appoints acting prosecutor general after Kravchenko's resignation

President Volodymyr Zelensky has assigned the duties of Prosecutor General to Anton Kovalsky, who previously headed the Khmelnytskyi Regional Prosecutor's Office. Kovalsky has worked in the prosecutor's office since 2011, previously led the Chernivtsi Regional Prosecutor's Office and served as deputy head of the Vinnytsia Regional Prosecutor's Office.

Zelensky signed the relevant decree No. 946/2026 on September 17. The decision was made on the basis of part two of Article 11 of the law "On the Legal Regime of Martial Law".

"Assign Anton Anatoliyovych Kovalsky the duties of Prosecutor General", the decree states.

What is known about Anton Kovalsky

Anton Kovalsky is a career prosecutor from Vinnytsia. He began working in the prosecutor's office in 2011 and rose from senior investigator to head of regional prosecutor's offices.

In the Vinnytsia region, Kovalsky worked in various positions in the prosecutor's office, including heading the supervisory department in criminal proceedings. In September 2020, he became deputy head of the Vinnytsia Regional Prosecutor's Office and worked in this position until autumn 2021.

In November 2021, Kovalsky headed the Chernivtsi Regional Prosecutor's Office. He held this position for more than three and a half years. According to the prosecutor's office, one of the areas of work of the department during this period was combating smuggling.

From July 1, 2025, on the recommendation of the Council of Prosecutors of Ukraine, Kovalsky was appointed head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Prosecutor's Office. He held this position until his appointment as acting Prosecutor General.

Thus, before moving to the Prosecutor General's Office, Kovalsky had about 15 years of experience in the prosecution system, of which almost five years were in leadership positions in regional prosecutor's offices.

What preceded

Kovalsky replaced Ruslan Kravchenko in the leadership of the prosecutor's office. On September 14, Zelensky suspended Kravchenko from the post of Prosecutor General, and on September 15 the Verkhovna Rada agreed to his dismissal. On the same day, the president signed the relevant decree.

Personnel decisions took place against the backdrop of the resonant "Carthage" case. NABU and SAPO suspect one of the then leaders of the Prosecutor General's Office Serhiy Kropyva and other figures of creating a criminal organization, systematically receiving bribes from a network of fraudulent call centers, and laundering illegally obtained funds. Kravchenko himself is not a suspect in this case.

In the last days before his dismissal, Kravchenko stated that he had signed a notice of suspicion to NABU Director Semen Kryvonos, and also reported suspicions to SAPO employees. The Prosecutor General's Office later stated that in the relevant criminal proceedings, no person, including the head of the anti-corruption agency, was notified of suspicion in the manner prescribed by the CPC. The entries in the URPI regarding the notice of suspicion were canceled.

A separate dispute arose over sending documents by mail. "Ukrposhta" began checking the processing of Kravchenko's mailings after it became known from published receipts that they were paid in cash at a branch, although the contract between the postal operator and the Prosecutor General's Office provides for non-cash payments.

Based on materials: Office of the President, Suspilne, Ukrainska Pravda