The Verkhovna Rada has agreed with President Petro Poroshenko's motion to dismiss Prosecutor General of Ukraine Viktor Shokin.

A total of 289 MPs voted for the measure on Tuesday in parliament.

The parliamentary faction of the Bloc of Petro Poroshenko gave 114 votes in favor of the motion. It was also supported by 72 MPs from Arseniy Yatseniuk's People's Front Party faction, 24 MPs from Andriy Sadovy's Samopomich Party faction and two MPs from the Opposition Bloc.

As was reported earlier, the Verkhovna Rada committee for legislative support of law enforcement activity on March 16 recommended that parliament should support a draft resolution giving the consent to the dismissal of Shokin. Out of the committee members who were present at the meeting, 10 voted for the decision, four were against and three refrained.

President Poroshenko said in his address to the nation on February 16 that he had asked Shokin to step down.

On February 19, presidential press secretary Sviatoslav Tseholko confirmed that Shokin's letter of resignation had arrived at the presidential administration.

On the same day, Poroshenko tabled a motion in parliament to dismiss Shokin. On February 22 a draft resolution on MPs' consent to dismiss the chief prosecutor was registered on the parliament's website.

Shokin, born in 1952, was appointed Prosecutor General in February 2015.

Under the Ukrainian Constitution, the Prosecutor General should be appointed and dismissed by the president with the parliament's consent. However, lawmakers could hold a vote of no-confidence, after which the Prosecutor General should resign if there is a required number of votes.