 On 29 May 2015, Poroshenko invited former President of Georgia and his friend Mikheil Saakashvili to help with conducting reforms in the Ukraine and granted him Ukrainian citizenship.The very next day after receiving citizenship on 30 May 2015, Saakashvili was appointed by the president as head (governor) of the Odessa Regional State Administration (see Governor of Odessa Oblast).However, on 26 July 2017 Poroshenko issued a decree stripping Saakashvili of his Ukrainian citizenship, without providing any reason.