The word is with London. Why hasn’t Zaluzhny been appointed ambassador to Britain yet?

On March 7, 2024, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced the appointment of former Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valeriy Zaluzhny, as the ambassador to the United Kingdom. However, since then, there have been no other official announcements on the matter.

The president’s decree appointing the former chief of staff as ambassador has not yet been issued, leading to various rumors in political circles.

Among them is speculation that the situation regarding the appointment may be reconsidered.

However, according to information from Ukrainian journalists, obtained from the Office of the President, the appointment remains in effect. Currently, Ukraine awaits the agrément from the United Kingdom (the consent of one state to the appointment of a specific individual as the head of the diplomatic mission of another state) for the appointment of the former chief of staff as ambassador.

“It cannot be said that London is delaying; this is a normal process in diplomatic circles. Usually, this takes more or less a month,” says a source.

Recall that according to Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba, one of the factors in Zelensky’s decision to send former Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny to London is that London hosts the embassies of a large number of countries from the global South.