IndiaTheNews Exclusive: What threat did Zelensky face from his army chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi that he had to be removed in the middle of the war?

This week in IndiaTheNews News Network’s special program Shaurya Path, we wanted to know from Brigadier Shri DS Tripathi (Retd) that Ukraine, which was fighting with Russia, is now embroiled in a mutual conflict because President Zelensky has made all kinds of allegations against the top military officers. They have been removed. In response to this, he said that it is true that instead of engaging with Russia, the Ukrainian army is currently entangled among itself and the kind of allegations leveled against Ukrainian military officers have spread disappointment among the soldiers at the lower level. He said that if soldiers of any army become dejected, especially during war, then it is not good for that country.

Brigadier Shri DS Tripathi (Retd) said that the President of Ukraine has dismissed the Commander-in-Chief of the country’s Armed Forces, Valery Zaluzny. He said it reflected the rift between the president and General Zaluzny, who has led Ukraine’s war effort since the conflict began. He said that the President has now handed over the command to General Oleksandr Syrsky but changing the military commander in the middle of the war is not the right step in terms of military strategy. He said it was the biggest change in Ukraine’s military leadership since Russia’s invasion in February 2022. He said that President Zelensky has said that this has been done to bring innovation in the military command. He said that General Zaluzny “can remain in the team”. He said that General Zaluzny is a popular general who is trusted by Ukrainian soldiers and people and to some extent he has been a national hero. Not only this, General Zaluzny’s recent approval rating has been higher than Zelensky’s, he said. He said that Zelensky may have felt his position in danger due to General Zaluzny’s popularity, so he removed him from the post. He said that but the spirit that is visible from the people and soldiers of Ukraine may prove to be overwhelming for Zelensky.

Brigadier Shri DS Tripathi (Retd) said that Ukraine’s opposition MPs have also criticized this change. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko expressed his displeasure at the decision and thanked General Zaluzny for his service to Ukraine. He said that apart from this, MP Oleksiy Honcharenko of the opposition party led by former President Petro Poroshenko has said that this step was a big mistake made by the President. He said that this will pose a danger to the country and we all will have to pay the price of this mistake. He said that another opposition MP, Valentin Nalyvaichenko, has said that during the war we should support the military leadership, not criticize, but help in every possible way, but the government itself did not do so.

Brigadier Shri DS Tripathi (Retd) said that the new Army Chief of Ukraine, General Sirski, has experience of both defensive and offensive warfare. He led the defense of the Ukrainian capital Kiev at the start of a full-scale invasion by Russia in 2022. He then planned Ukraine’s surprise and successful counter-offensive at Kharkiv in the summer and has since served as chief of military operations in eastern Ukraine. He said that Russian President Vladimir Putin is happy seeing all this. They see that on one hand, Ukraine is not getting that much foreign help and on the other hand, it is now entangled among itself, due to which victory for Russia is not far away.