Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov today rejected proposals from President Volodymyr Zelensky to return to the government and insisted he will only take up a government post again if reappointed head of Defense.
Fedorov turned down the Ukrainian head of state’s offer to become deputy prime minister for military innovation and, in a statement cited by the Ukrinform news agency, said that only the President, the head of the Army and the Minister of Defense have decisive influence over the course of the war.
“That is why I will not accept any position other than that of Minister of Defense,” Fedorov said shortly after Zelensky announced at a press conference that he had offered him several positions so that he could continue overseeing the sector’s technological transformation from outside the Ministry of Defense.
“No other position has real authority to fight corruption in procurement, to fully transform the Army and carry out asymmetric operations against the enemy, eradicate the culture of lies and lack of accountability within the system, or bring to fruition the initiatives our team has already launched from the Ministry of Defense,” Fedorov said.
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Zelensky dismissed Fedorov from the post of Defense Minister last week, a decision that triggered street protests and numerous critical reactions that later forced the Ukrainian leader to dismiss the then head of the Army, Oleksandr Syrsky.
Fedorov had attributed his departure to a conflict with Syrsky, whom he accused of sabotaging his initiatives to modernize the Army and criticized for his alleged resistance to giving greater prominence to drones.
Fedorov’s supporters, in their protests calling for his return, demanded Syrsky’s immediate dismissal, who ended up being replaced this week as head of the Army by General Mykhailo Drapaty, an ally of Fedorov.
This appointment was not, however, enough to satisfy the former minister, who, according to a poll published on Wednesday, surpasses Zelensky himself in popularity.
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The organizers of the demonstrations in support of Fedorov plan to return to the streets daily starting Friday to demand his return to the leadership of the Ministry of Defense.
