Zelensky faces backlash after replacing defence minister
Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine’s President, is facing mounting criticism after abruptly replacing Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, triggering protests in Kyiv and several other cities. Demonstrators, many of them young Ukrainians, accused the president of undermining the country’s war effort, carrying banners reading “Hands off Fedorov” and “Stop sabotaging victory.”
Zelensky nominated Yevhenii Khmara, the acting head of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU), to serve as acting defence minister, saying his experience in advanced military operations made him the right person for the role. The move followed months of reported tensions between Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi.
Speaking after his dismissal, Fedorov disclosed that he had advised Zelensky to replace both Syrskyi and Chief of the General Staff Andrii Hnatov, arguing that his reform proposals were repeatedly blocked. Zelensky acknowledged that relations between the defence ministry and military leadership had become “systemic” and said
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