Resnikov's removal follows corruption allegations, which he denies. Zelenskyy did not comment on the reason for the reshuffle. He has proposed Rustem Umerov, the head of Ukraine's main privatization fund, as the new defense minister.
The decision to replace Mr. Reznikov atop the Defense Ministry comes as Ukraine is in the midst of a major counteroffensive, slowly gaining territory in the south and the east. Last week, Ukrainian officials said they had captured the southern village of Robotyne, suggesting that the offensive had penetrated the first layer of minefields, tank traps, trenches and bunkers Moscow has deployed between Ukraine’s forces and Russian-occupied Crimea.
The shake-up arose from several factors, according to an official in the president’s office, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the dismissal. Those included an understanding that Ukraine will need new leadership as the war drags on, the din of criticism from Ukrainian civil society groups and media over the contracting scandals, and Mr. Reznikov’s own requests to step down.
No comments:
Post a Comment