Klitschko: central authorities want to replace him with a military administration head

Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko has said he is being accused of failing to prepare for winter in order to remove him from office and replace him with a military administration head.

The mayor published the statement on his social media.

According to Klitschko, the accusations are being spread by Telegram channels linked to the Office of the President. He identified the alleged disruption of the heating season as the main pretext for the attack.

“The key accusation is the disruption of the heating season, which hasn’t even started yet. A very strange story. It is being pushed by the same resources that are connected to the central authorities. I would like to remind you that local self-government is being targeted for destruction, and three hundred mayors — I can say this as the head of the association of city mayors — three hundred city heads are being sought to be removed from their positions for various reasons, far-fetched and contrived, and replaced with military administration heads. In other words, they are trying to get rid of Klitschko and appoint someone in his place,” the mayor said.

Klitschko stressed that he intends to continue carrying out his duties, since he was elected by the city’s residents. He suggested that an assessment of his work be deferred until the next elections.

Responding to the accusations on their merits, the mayor noted that he is not responsible for air defense, and that problems with electricity supply are linked to the intensity of the shelling and the destruction of infrastructure.

“Given the intensity of the shelling and the fact that the lights go out, that the electricity supply system has been destroyed, that infrastructure is being destroyed — the mayor is not responsible for air defense. Kyiv was and remains the enemy’s primary target,” Klitschko said.

Shortly before this, President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Klitschko of failing to prepare Kyiv for strikes on energy facilities.