Ukraine’s top general declines Zelenskiy’s request to step down
- 31 January, 01:49
Ukraine’s army chief Valeriy Zeluzhny on Monday refused to step down after being asked to do so by President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, according to media reports.
Reports emerged in the Ukrainian media on Monday, claiming that Zaluzhny was summoned by Zelenskiy who asked for his resignation. It’s expected that the senior military official will be dismissed after refusing to resign.
Ukrainian opposition MP and Zaluzny’s ally Oleksii Goncharenko told the Guardian that Zelenskiy’s office has been concerned that Zaluzhny has been making political not military statements.
Ukrainian Defence Ministry addressed the speculations over Zaluzhny’s possible dismissal. “Dear journalists, we immediately answer everyone: No, this is not true,” the ministry stated in a social media post on Monday afternoon, assuming that everybody reading understood what was being referred to.
Asked if the reports of Zaluzhny’s sacking were true, Zelenskiy’s spokesperson Sergii Nykyforov said: “Definitely not. The president has not dismissed the commander-in-chief.” Neither General Zaluzhny nor President Zelenskiy himself have commented on the ongoing speculations over the top general’s resignation.
The drift between the senior military official and President Zelensky has been widening recently. In November, Zaluzhny said there was a stalemate in Ukraine’s counteroffensive launched in summer. The statement was quickly rebuffed by Zelenskiy. In yet another statement made in December, Zaluzhny criticized the military mobilization offices for not drafting sufficient number of conscripts into the army, saying that there was a shortage of soldiers. In an interview in December, Zelenskiy signaled that he was not happy with the performance of the country’s Armed Forces. “I am waiting for very concrete things on the battlefield, I await their decisions. The strategy is clear; I want to see the details. I think that’s fair,” he said. According to Ukrainian media, Zelensky has been “bypassing” General Zaluzhny in communication with some military commanders.
