Volodymyr Zelensky called for the resignation of General Valery Zaluzhny, head of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Zaluzhny refused to take the step back. The tug of war is taking place in Kiev, according to the Guardian, in a crucial phase of the war with Russia which is about to cross the 2-year mark. Moscow, as highlighted by analysts and as also outlined by Ukrainian military sources, is preparing a new push along the contact line, particularly in the east: in the middle of winter the ground is about to freeze and this will make travel and transfers easier.
Russia, according to information coming from the front, is amassing means and men while Ukraine is forced to carefully manage weapons and ammunition, given that the aid package promised by American President Joe Biden is still blocked in Washington by the opposition of a group of Republicans in the Senate.
In this context, relations between Zelensky and Zaluzhny have become increasingly tense. The feeling was affected by the disappointing outcome of the counter-offensive conducted by Kiev last year: in the south, in particular, the operations made it possible to reconquer territories in the Zaporizhzhia region but the objective of cutting the Russian line in two and reaching the thresholds of Crimea was not hit. Zaluzhny, in a explosive interview with the Economist, spoke of the war being “stalled” in the autumn. The general's words did not please – to put it mildly – the president. Now, it seems the time for redde rationem has arrived. “Yesterday the president asked Zaluzhny to resign but he refused,” says Oleksii Goncharenko, an opposition parliamentarian and figure considered close to the general. “I think it's a very bad idea. There are no relevant issues between them, but Zelensky's office fears that Zaluzhny expressed political and not military positions,” adds the MP.
The general is a prominent figure in the country and, according to Kiev media, could be Zelensky's only real opponent if he were to run in the presidential elections, frozen by the war. Zaluzhny has never publicly expressed that he wants to pursue a career. In November, meanwhile, Zelensky in an interview with the Sun put his hand forward, defining “a big mistake” the possible leap of the military into the political arena: it would be risky, according to the president, if the commanders “managed the war having in mind mind politics and elections for the future. With all due respect to General Zaluzhny and all commanders on the battlefield, the hierarchy is clear”: the president is at the top.
The denials of the Ministry of Defense, which in the last 24 hours has debunked the Ukrainian media articles, do not put an end to the matter. Zelensky could independently decide to remove Zaluzhny, but in this case he would need the support of the Defense Ministry. The name of Kyrylo Budanov, head of intelligence, already indicated in the past as a possible heir to former Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, is circulating for the position of commander of the armed forces.
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