Protesters demanding the reinstatement of Mykhailo Fedorov are still mounting daily street protests in Ukrainian cities, as President Volodymyr Zelensky's decision to remove the defence minister continues to reverberate politically. On 15 July, Zelensky chose not to reappoint Fedorov as part of a cabinet reshuffle, triggering a crisis that has not abated even as air raid sirens wail over Kyiv and Russian drones are intercepted.
Fedorov, widely credited with driving much of Ukraine's recent technological innovation, has rejected Zelensky's offers of alternative posts in government. "There are only three positions worth having to influence the course of the war: minister of defence, commander-in-chief of the military or president of Ukraine," Fedorov said. His reference to the presidency did not go unnoticed. One former defence official suggested he became a real candidate for the presidency the moment he was dismissed.
“Zelensky's crisis deepens as sacked defence minister Fedorov refuses alternative roles and daily protests persist.”
An opposition MP, speaking on condition of anonymity, called Fedorov's stance "childish." "He's looking to further his political career, which I think is just stupid in the circumstances where we are," the MP said. Ex-deputy defence minister Alina Frolova noted: "If you don't have a ministry under you, you don't have a budget, and you don't actually have the authority to do something."
Zelensky has moved to resolve the crisis by appointing a new commander-in-chief, Maj Gen Mykhailo Drapatyi, 43, a highly respected former commander of Ukraine's land forces. Former government adviser Yuriy Sak said Zelensky "consulted pretty much every significant figure in the Ukrainian army" before the decision. Sak added: "General Drapatyi is a young, battle-proven, modern general who will take our defences to a new level, hopefully."
With an acting defence minister in place and a new military chief, the immediate political crisis may appear over, but Fedorov's continued refusal and the daily protests suggest the fallout is far from contained.