The Ukrainian government could be heading for a major reset, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told reporters in a press conference on February 4 that he is considering replacing several senior officials.
Speculation over the potential dismissal of highly popular commander Valeriy Zaluzhnyi had been growing over the past few weeks. Mr. Zaluzhnyi and Mr. Zelenskyy have been at odds over the handling of the war with Russia, which has been ongoing for almost two years.
Mr. Zelenskyy, however, said that any changes would amount to more than replacing a single person, as he is ramping up efforts to oust Russian troops.
“When I speak of turnover, I have in mind something serious that does not concern a single person, but the direction of the country’s leadership,” Mr. Zelenskyy told Italian state RAI television when asked about Mr. Zaluzhnyi.
Mr. Zelenskyy, whose comments were voiced over in Italian, added, “It is a question of the people who are to lead Ukraine. A reset is necessary, I am talking about a replacement of a number of state leaders, not only in the army sector.
“I am reflecting on this replacement. It’s a question for the entire leadership of the country.”
Mr. Zelenskyy also emphasized that to win the war, all within the government must push in the same direction, without being discouraged and by maintaining a positive attitude with a determined focus.
“We must have the right and positive energy—negativity must be left at home. We can’t take on giving-up attitudes,” he said.
Recent developments in Ukraine’s war effort against Russia have created disparities at the core of Ukraine’s leadership.
A Ukrainian counteroffensive launched last year failed to make notable gains against Russian forces, well established along the roughly 600-mile front line in Ukraine’s south and east.
In November, Mr. Zaluzhnyi wrote an essay for the Economist in which he stated that the war has entered a new phase that has witnessed much disintegration, a statement that did not sit well with Mr. Zelenskyy, who admonished him.
Since then, speculation over Mr. Zaluzhnyi’s dismissal has intensified.
Zaluzhnyi Suggests ‘Wholesale Redesign’
This past week, Mr. Zaluzhnyi set out his case in a commentary on CNN, where he discussed “wholesale redesign of battlefield operations,” including “digital field creation, radio-electronic environment control, or a combined operation using attack drones and cyber assets.”
The rift between Ukrainian officials became even more apparent when Mr. Zelenskyy went on to say that some Ukrainian institutions were keeping the country from achieving its objectives.
This includes countering Russian numerical superiority through mass mobilization, a measure deemed largely unpopular.
Yet Mr. Zaluzhnyi remains popular with many Ukrainians. His initial operations to repel Russian forces advancing on Kyiv at the outset of the war recaptured large areas in the country’s south and northeast.
However, according to recent media reports out of Ukraine on at least two occasions, Mr. Zaluzhnyi’s dismissal was imminent, although this was denied by a spokesperson for the president, who said the commander had not been replaced.
Regardless, it has led to more conjecture about a possible alternative position he had been offered, such as an ambassadorship, as well as questions about who might replace him.
Two names came up as possible leading candidates to fill his position—Oleksandr Syrskyi, commander of land forces, and Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Ukrainian defense ministry’s intelligence directorate.
Reuters contributed to this article