New Delhi: Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy Thursday replaced his top general Valerii Zaluzhnyi in what he termed as an effort to “renew” the leadership of the armed forces. The development comes two years into Ukraine’s war with Russia.
Colonel-General Oleksandr Syrskyi has been named the top general. The decision to replace Zaluzhnyi has been weeks in the making, with Zelenskyy reportedly ready to sack the general nearly 10 days ago.
“Today, I made the decision to renew the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine…Starting today, a new management team will take over (the) leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. I had dozens of conversations with commanders at various levels,” said Zelenskyy in a statement published on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
Today, I made the decision to renew the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
I am grateful to General Zaluzhnyi for two years of defense. I appreciate every victory we have achieved together, thanks to all the Ukrainian warriors who are heroically carrying this war on… pic.twitter.com/GBj9gBI0vT
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 8, 2024
There was no mention of whether Zaluzhnyi was asked to resign or offered his resignation. According to The New York Times, the relationship between the two individuals has been deteriorating for months, as Ukraine’s 2023 summer counter-offensive came to a screeching halt.
The decision to replace Zaluzhnyi — a well-respected general who led Ukraine’s defence against the Russian assault in February 2022 — comes at a time when the Ukrainian forces are engaged in heavy fighting with Russian forces in the eastern town of Avdiivka.
The town is merely 20 km from Donetsk, which is held by Russian forces. Russian forces have congregated around the north of the town in an attempt to sever the single road that Ukrainian forces are using to supply the town, Dmytro Lykhovyy, a Ukrainian military spokesperson told local television.
The mayor of Avdiivka, Vitaliy Barabash, told Reuters that only 941 residents remain in the town that was at one point home to 32,000 residents. The town was seized by pro-Russian forces at the start of the Ukrainian civil war in 2014 but was recaptured by the Ukrainian armed forces and has since become a site for heavy defence fortifications.
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Ukrainian efforts at a major inflection point
The Ukrainian armed forces have reached a major inflection point in the war against Russia. According to another NYT report on 23 January, 2024, it has been on the defensive in recent weeks as Russia has launched fierce assaults using ballistic and cruise missiles.
Kyiv’s efforts have hit a stumbling block with one of its largest supporters, the US, struggling to pass a $60 billion aid package to shore up its armed forces. Ukraine, however, received good news last week, with the European Union (EU) agreeing to a EUR 50 billion aid package.
The US Senate Thursday supported a bill to fund Ukraine and Israel but many steps remain till it can become law, including a divided Republican party both in the Senate and House of Representatives.
Both Zaluzhnyi and his successor Syrskyi were trained in the Soviet military system. According to the NYT, Zaluzhnyi who was consistently ranked as one of the most trusted figures in Ukraine alongside Zelenskyy in opinion polls, was a prospective challenger to the president in the future.
The relationship between Zelenskyy and Zaluzhnyi showed cracks in November 2023, when the former commander-in-chief wrote an essay declaring the war to be in a “stalemate”. The essay contradicted Zelenskyy’s positive public pronouncements on the status of the war.
What the impact of the shake-up in the Ukrainian armed forces amidst the war will have will be seen going forward. Zelenskyy, however, believes that 2024 would be a successful year only “through effective changes.”
“2024 can become successful for Ukraine only through effective changes in the basis of our defence, which is the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” said Zelenskyy on X.
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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