Western media interpreted the criticism by the Office of the President of Ukraine of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Valerii Zaluzhnyi as a ‘striking public rebuke’, signaling an ‘ emerging rift between the military and civilian leadership’.
This is stated in the article of The New York Times.
Thus, the publication took into account the statements of the Deputy Head of the Office of President Ihor Zhovkva, who, regarding Zaluzhnyi's article in The Economist, advised the General not to bring the situation at the front to the public.
“It was a striking public rebuke that signaled an emerging rift between the military and civilian leadership at an already challenging time for Ukraine,” the material said.
Zhovkva said that after the release of the above article, a foreign official called him:
“What should I report to my leader? Are you really at a dead end?” He added, “Was this the effect we wanted to achieve?” he raged.
At the same time, Zelenskyy disagreed with the characteristics of the hostilities that the General gave. "Time has passed, people are tired, regardless of their status, and this is understandable. But this is not a stalemate, I emphasize this once again,” he said at a press conference on Saturday.
The material emphasizes that the split between the emerging general and the president occurs at a time when Ukraine is trying to wage war, both militarily and diplomatically. It is noted that Ukraine's operations along the contact line did not produce any progress, but led to heavy losses on both sides, and Ukraine faces intensified russian attacks in the east.
At the same time, skepticism about assistance to Ukraine has increased in some European capitals and among members of the Republican Party in the United States. The Ukrainian leadership is also concerned that the attention of Western allies has switched to the conflict between Israel and Hamas.
The publication claims that signs of a split appeared on Friday, when the Zelenskyy Office dismissed one of the first deputies of General Zaluzhnyi, commander of the Special Operations Forces of Ukraine General Viktor Khorenko without first explaining the reasons.
On Saturday, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said he recommended Khorenko's dismissal, but would not explain why, so that it did not give grounds for the enemy to weaken Ukraine.
According to the NYT data from U.S. military officials, U.S. officers who worked with General Khorenko were surprised by the news of his resignation and spoke of a close and effective working relationship with him.
“But field commanders and military analysts had noted grumbling in the ranks over what were perceived as politically guided decisions on strategy, including the launch of an amphibious assault across the Dnipro River in southern Ukraine that has yet to secure a bridgehead on the Russian-held eastern bank,” the material said.
According to the Constitution of Ukraine, the President has the right to appoint and dismiss the head of the Special Operations Forces, although this position is directly subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The publication writes that the dismissal undermined the authority of General Zaluzhnyi.
The Ukrainian News Agency published a full official translation of Zaluzhnyi’s article for The Economist.
As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he appointed Serhii Lupanchuk as the Commander of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which will give the SOF more power.
Who we are: About us, Contacts. How we write news and our principles: Editorial code. We did our best. If you found this valuable – please support us.
To request a correction, please send an email.