Reasons for the rift between Ukraine's civilian and military leadership
(Baonghean.vn) - The Ukrainian government wants the military to find out how Kiev can defeat Russia but does not provide data on the resources they have to achieve that goal, an adviser to former Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny revealed.
In an interview with The New York Times published on February 24, Gen. Viktor Nazarov revealed one of the reasons for the rift between the country’s military and civilian leadership last year. He noted that military officials were troubled by demands from the Kiev government that the military draw up “a road map for victory without telling them how many troops, ammunition, and reserves they need to carry out any plan.” The general lamented that this was one of the factors that the civilian leadership “did not understand or did not want to understand” when it asked the military to draw up strategic plans without having strategic reserves.
Speaking to CNN earlier this month, General Zaluzhny criticized the “imperfections of the legal framework,” as well as the partial monopoly of the defense industry, which he said had led to production bottlenecks and exacerbated dependence on foreign arms shipments.
In a November article for the Economist, Ukraine’s former top commander also argued that the conflict is now in a “stalemate,” with both sides having the technological ability to know what the other is doing, making any progress on the battlefield problematic.
President Zelensky fired Zaluzhny, who oversaw Ukraine’s failed counteroffensive last year, as well as several other top commanders earlier this month. The Ukrainian president described the move as a “reset,” noting that “some things haven’t changed in recent times.” However, some media reports said Zelensky wanted to remove Zaluzhny as a potential political rival who was popular with the troops. Zaluzhny was replaced by General Aleksandr Syrsky, whom Politico described as a “butcher” who was unpopular with the troops, who were frustrated with his willingness to throw them into “fruitless attacks.”
Even before Ukraine’s chaotic retreat from the strategic Donbass town of Avdeevka, Syrsky admitted that Kiev was in a “difficult” frontline situation. He also said that Ukraine had now “transitioned” from offensive action to strategic defense.
However, commenting on the top leadership reshuffle, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed that Moscow does not expect this to have a significant impact on the battlefield./.
