Ukrainian general takes on Zelensky – and demands more soldiers

There are differences of opinion between Zelenskyj and his army chief – also over recruitment. Now Saluschnyj will probably be released.

KYIV – Ukraine needs to prepare for a reduction in military aid from its key allies and focus even more on technology, according to Ukraine's army chief Valery Zalushny. He also calls on his political superior, the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyto meet his demand for the conscription of up to 500,000 soldiers.

The general, who is popular in Ukraine and who, according to numerous reports, will be fired in the next few days, made the comments in a guest article for the US news portal on Thursday (February 1). CNN for the Ukraine war. “We must recognize that the enemy enjoys a significant advantage in mobilizing human resources and that state institutions in Ukraine are unable to improve the manpower of our armed forces without the use of unpopular measures,” Saluzhny said there. In doing so, he takes on Volodymyr Zelenskyj directly.

Zalushnyj wants to call up 500,000 people – and is Zelenskyj's only serious rival

The required mass mobilization has long been a source of tension between him and the Ukrainian president. Saluzhny has for some time been of the opinion that half a million people may have to be called up if Kiev is overwhelmingly superior of Russia want to oppose something. The dispute has now spilled into the public eye amid growing fears over the West's commitment to continued financial support for Kiev. The EU was finally able to agree on a 50 billion euro package for Kiev on Thursday (February 1st). However, concerns remain that US approval of new aid could be further delayed.

While Zelensky is the undisputed face of Ukraine abroad, Saluzhny rivals the president's popularity in Ukraine. His face is omnipresent there on posters and in Internet memes, like the British one Guradian reported. It is this rival popularity that lies at the heart of the current crisis, opposition MP and Saluzhny ally Oleksiy Honcharenko told the newspaper. Zelenskyj wants to be “the only star in the show”.

The general had criticized the sluggish counteroffensive – now he could be fired

Zalushnyy was appointed head of the Ukrainian armed forces in July 2021, at a time when Ukraine had already been struggling with Russian incursions into its eastern provinces for seven years. Dem Guardian According to him, he is seen as the embodiment of Ukraine's military transformation from Soviet-era stubbornness to Western modernity. Last summer, however, the first conflicts with Zelensky arose because the general was supporting Ukraine's sluggish counteroffensive against the Economist described as a dead end. Although this interview angered the presidential office, it did not harm Saluzhny's popularity according to opinion polls, the newspaper continued.

Now the commander-in-chief is set to be fired, a move that Oleksiy Honcharenko fears will “harm the morale of society,” although it is unlikely to have any impact on the battlefield. Loud CNN Zalushnyj was summoned to a meeting in Mr. Zelensky's office on Monday (January 29) to be informed of his dismissal. He was offered another position but declined it. The Ukrainian president will announce the general's firing, which would be the biggest military shakeup since the Russian invasion, by the end of the week, it said.

To victory, despite dwindling military aid: Saluzhnyj's three-point plan for the Ukraine war

The army chief's guest article for CNN However, it was written before the expected announcement of his dismissal and does not address this or his relationship with the president. Instead, the military commander there is trying to build on an argument made three months ago Economist published essay and comments for the first time on a series of political setbacks at home and abroad. Saluzhnyy advocates for increased use of modern technologies on the battlefield and warns that “we should expect a reduction in military support from key allies” as they “struggle with their own political tensions.”