Nationwide Protests Erupt Over Dismissal of Ukraine’s Defence Minister

Large demonstrations broke out across multiple Ukrainian cities on Thursday morning in opposition to the removal of Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. In Kyiv, AFP correspondents observed over a thousand people assembled in a central square, singing the national anthem, waving Ukrainian and European Union flags, and chanting slogans such as “shame” and “bring Fedorov back.”

Appointed just six months ago, Fedorov had earned a reputation as a reformer attempting to modernise a military exhausted by more than four years of Russian invasion. His dismissal injects uncertainty into the armed forces at a moment when Ukraine has achieved one of its strongest positions in the conflict for months, having slowed the Russian advance and struck Russian oil and military infrastructure with long-range drones.

Fedorov announced his resignation late Wednesday, calling it a “great honour to serve the Ukrainian people,” amid a broad government reshuffle ordered by President Volodymyr Zelensky. No official reason was provided for the decision, which protesters attributed to internal friction between Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky.

“I believe that his dismissal is a slap in the face of the Ukrainian people,” Vlada Roman, a 30-year-old business owner, told AFP. She expressed hope that Zelensky would reverse course, suggesting the president was “afraid of effective people,” and added, “After today’s rally he’ll change his mind, I hope so.”

Local media reported similar protests in Lviv, Odesa, and Dnipro. Zelensky has yet to name a successor as part of changes that have also seen the prime minister removed. The deputy commander of Ukraine’s air force, Pavlo Yelizarov, resigned in protest over Fedorov’s departure.

“It is a great honor for me to work with Mykhailo Fedorov. In 2022, I joined the defence forces to win, not to pretend to be doing something,” he stated in his resignation letter.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

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