President Leonid Kuchma accepted the resignation of Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych.
This was reported on Wednesday by the president's press service.
First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov has been appointed acting prime minister of Ukraine.
Yanukovych headed the government since November 21, 2002.
As reported, on December 1, 2004, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a resolution in which it expressed no confidence in the Cabinet of Ministers, which was to result in its resignation. However, after this decision by parliament, Yanukovych stated that he would not resign.
Before the final round of voting in the presidential election, Yanukovych was granted unpaid leave for 21 calendar days - from December 6 to December 26, 2004. During this time, the duties of head of government were performed by First Vice Prime Minister, Finance Minister Mykola Azarov.
On December 31, in a televised address, the prime minister said he had decided to resign - to write a formal statement.
Before his appointment as prime minister, Yanukovych had been head of the Donetsk regional administration since May 1997, and from May 1999 to May 2001 - chairman of the regional council concurrently.
Before his appointment as first vice prime minister, finance minister on November 26, 2002, Azarov had headed the State Tax Administration since its creation in October 1996.
"Ukrainska Pravda"