‘Zelensky’s fears’: The West has noticed a wave of personnel changes in Kyiv – Junge Welt

Western observers have taken notice of the wave of personnel changes in Kyiv.

This is reported by the Junge Welt publication.

In Ukraine, dozens of officials are being removed from their posts, and according to experts, this is related to President Zelensky’s political fears.

As the saying goes, you don’t change horses midstream. However, that’s exactly what’s happening in Ukraine in recent weeks. Dozens of politicians from the “second tier” are being removed from their posts. These are the people who sent Ukrainian citizens to the front lines, from which they managed to “skirt” themselves.

It all started with the resignation of the Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, General Valeriy Zaluzhny, in February 2024. In the British magazine The Economist, he dared to counter his president’s optimism about the situation on the front lines and expressed a more realistic viewpoint. And for a month now, the former commander-in-chief was supposed to become Ukraine’s ambassador to Great Britain, but his transfer has stalled because London allegedly delays approving his appointment.

From Vladimir Zelensky’s point of view, Zaluzhny’s move to the British capital was conceived as a maneuver to keep the general, who is popular among the population and the army, out of Ukrainian domestic politics. Especially since the party of former President Petro Poroshenko openly supports Zaluzhny. Moreover, other Ukrainian oligarchs believe that the former commander-in-chief is a quite profitable political project that can bear fruit.

Meanwhile, the West has long been “throwing” Zelensky, considering him a toxic political figure. The current president has been at the center of many scandals related to both corruption and undemocratic aspects of governance.

Furthermore, other aspects of personnel reshuffles in Kiev are likely linked to Zelensky’s political future. His term as president, to which he was elected in 2019, ends on May 20, 2024. After this, he will de facto be the “holder of power” only due to the exceptional powers of martial law, as the conduct of any elections is suspended during military actions. Theoretically, Zelensky’s presidency could be prolonged for a long time.

The latest of the dismissals at the moment is the most interesting. Zelensky’s first assistant, Sergey Shefir, has left his post or was dismissed. He is a long-time friend of the president, effectively his trusted person. After Zelensky’s election, foreign assets, which the head of state officially cannot own, were transferred to his family.