President Zelensky said he is thinking about replacing Commander-in-Chief Zaluzhny
(Baonghean.vn) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the country needs to establish a new beginning, including replacing officials in the military sector. And this will happen soon in the near future.
According to Ria Novosti, in an interview on Rai News channel (Italy) on February 4, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was thinking of replacing Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Valery Zaluzhny.
"This is a matter of concern for the Ukrainian leadership. Of course, it is necessary to establish a new beginning. When we talk about this issue, the replacement of a number of top state officials, not only in the military sphere. This replacement will take place in the near future" - President Zelensky said.
According to the Ukrainian leader, replacing "a person does not mean that he can now immediately leave his position". Reflecting on the changes in the top leadership of the Ukrainian government, President Zelensky said that Kiev needs to "go in a single direction", and "have positive energy, leaving behind negative energy".
"When I talk about resetting and changing personnel, I mean something serious, irrelevant and just for anyone. This change is under the direction of the entire country's leadership" - President Zelensky said.
This is the first time President Zelensky has publicly mentioned the replacement of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny. Previously, the media had made many speculations. The Financial Times reported on January 29 that President Zelensky met with General Zaluzhny and offered to voluntarily resign and take on the position of advisor.
Meanwhile, the Economist magazine said that this general was offered the position of Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, but Mr. Zaluzhny refused. The Economist also said that the Director General of the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Service, Kirill Budanov, was nominated for the position of Commander-in-Chief, but he also refused.
Russia's foreign intelligence agency said that the US asked Mr. Zelensky to fire Ukrainian officials who had lost confidence, otherwise Washington would publish corruption files on the Kiev government. According to the intelligence agency, the US is also proposing to promote Ukrainian Ambassador to the US Oksana Markarova to the position of Prime Minister of Ukraine./.
