The material support of the army was not enough for him: the dismissed minister Mykhailo Fedorov also raised the question of how the war is being fought - and incurred the wrath of the military. The conflict puts Zelensky in a difficult situation.
The dismissal of Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has sparked major protests. Since July 16, there have been constant demonstrations in Kiev and other major cities in Ukraine, the participants of which demand the return of Fedorov to his post and the dismissal of the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, Oleksandr Syrsky. All this presents President Volodymyr Zelensky with difficult decisions.
The conflict between the minister and the commander-in-chief
The reason for the dismissal of the minister, in his own words, is the existing conflict with Syrsky. Fedorov criticized him for “blocking initiatives” and “not being ready to talk about the problems”.
President Zelensky explained that Syrsky and Fedorov could not get along and admitted that this had become a problem for him as well. “I respect both sides, I know their good qualities and weaknesses, and I would really like them to strengthen Ukraine. However, in such a situation, there is only one way out - either one side or the other”, Zelensky pointed out.
Syrsky, for his part, spread a short message on social networks in which he thanked Fedorov for his work as Minister of Defense. “His wish to remain in the team”, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief wrote.
"A problem caused by the system"
Political scientist Oleg Sahakyan told DV that Zelensky is in a situation where two sides are making categorical demands on each other - on one side is the military wing, represented by Supreme Commander-in-Chief Syrsky, and on the other side is the technological wing under the leadership of Fedorov. “Fedorov's release has revealed a clear ethical rift in Zelensky's team. It is no longer about Fedorov or Syrsky, but about the moral decision that the president must make - or about Syrsky's methods, i.e. "... about the army and mobilization, or about the ethical principles and methods promoted by Fedorov," Sahakyan explains.
Fedorov's release has further heated up the debate in Ukraine about the relations between the civilian leadership of the Ministry of Defense and the military command. Mykola Beleskov, an expert at the Ukrainian foundation "Return Alive," believes that this is not an interpersonal problem, but a problem caused by the system.
"If a military minister does not want to limit himself only to ensuring the material support of the army, but also raises questions about the strategic leadership of the war, it causes discontent among the military," Beleskov told DW. Without a solution to this problem at a systemic level, the conflict between the military and civilian leadership will persist, he warns.
Will there be a lack of new technologies?
Meanwhile, the duties of the Minister of Defense were assigned to Yevgeny Khmara, the previous head of the Special Operations Center "A" and since January the head of the Security Service of Ukraine. "Khmara has extensive, even unprecedented, experience in conducting technological strike operations. Our defense in this war should focus on this," Zelensky said.
Khmara's candidacy is yet to be proposed to parliament for approval. But the next plenary session is not until mid-August.
Former employee of the Security Service of Ukraine and military expert Ivan Stupak described the new Minister of Defense to DW as a specialist who knows military affairs inside out. But according to Stupak, Khmara will not be able to fully replace Fedorov, who was not a military man. As a visionary and pioneer of digitalization, he played a unique role in Ukrainian politics. “Drones will continue to fly, but there will hardly be any real renewal, breakthroughs in digitalization, cooperation with Silicon Valley or the American concern “Palantir”, Stupak fears.
Tasks of the new defense minister
Ikhor Reiterovich from the “Taras Shevchenko” University in Kyiv is convinced that the change of head in the defense ministry will fundamentally change the way it works. “If the previous minister acted more like a manager, in the future the emphasis will be on the military side of things.”
His opinion is that Khmara's task will be to improve cooperation between the Ministry of Defense and the Supreme Commander-in-Chief. The expert sees this as the reason for the Ukrainian president's recent decisions. “This is an attempt to optimize cooperation between the ministry and the army. In fact, it is about settling the conflict between the ministry and the military command headed by Syrsky”, Reuterovich told DW.
The fact that the new head of the Ministry of Defense is not a civilian is an advantage, military expert Ivan Stupak believes. “Khmara is a soldier, wears a uniform, knows the rules of the game and can speak to the generals in a language they understand”, the expert points out.