Ukraine war briefing: Protests of Fedorov’s dismissal continue as Zelenskyy tries to repair rift with Poland
Thousands gather outside presidential office for second day, following surprise government reshuffle. What we know on day 1,606 For a second day, thousands of Ukrainians
Thousands gather outside presidential office for second day, following surprise government reshuffle. What we know on day 1,606 For a second day, thousands of Ukrainians have taken to the streets to protest against the sudden removal of popular and innovative defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, who has clashed with the more conventional military chief of staff, Oleksandr Syrskyi. Several thousand people gathered outside the presidential office after Fedorov was not reappointed in the surprise government reshuffle. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has defended his decision, saying he was forced “to choose between sides [when honestly] what I want most is unity”. The move, which comes just as Kyiv appeared to be gaining some advantages in its war with Russia, has exposed a troubling flaw in the president’s leadership, and startled senior European officials. As Guardian senior international correspondent Peter Beaumont writes, the move is shocking because Fedorov had successfully leveraged drone and missile technology. “With hindsight, the conflict between the two men and their ideas about how to fight the war was inevitable: between an older – and old-school general – micromanaging a bruising war of attrition against a more numerous foe, and Fedorov, with his tech-driven, more improvisational approach that appeared in recent months to be showing dividends.” Meanwhile, Zelenskyy on Friday took steps to repair a rift with key ally Poland over his decision in May to name a Ukrainian army unit in honour of second world war fighters who killed Poles.
Zelenskyy pledged to expand investigations into those killings by the Ukrainian Insurgent Army, a pro-independence armed group, and open intelligence files. Zelenskyy told a meeting of senior officials that improved ties were critical in view of Poland’s help to Ukraine against Russia. Polish prime minister Donald Tusk wrote on X that Poland was “ready for a serious and friendly dialogue on the issues that unite us and those that divide us”. In Russia, authorities cracked down on dissent, detaining a blogger who criticised President Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine, and fining an anti-war politician, a warning to Kremlin critics that Putin would brook no opposition ahead of September’s parliamentary election. The president and the dominant United Russia party are under pressure because of a slowing economy and fuel shortages triggered by Ukrainian attacks on oil refineries. The blogger, Ilya Remeslo, was detained on Friday on suspicion of spreading false information about the Russian army, the TASS state news agency reported.
The BriefWire