Ukraine Approves New Defence Minister Amid Reshuffle Crisis
Ukraine’s parliament approved Yevhenii Khmara as defence minister, with 312 votes, filling a post left vacant since the popular Mykhailo Fedorov was ousted in July. Mr Khmara, a special-forces major general, had served as acting minister and says Russia will have “no safe zones”. The vote came hours after Mr Fedorov called for wartime elections, hinting at political ambitions and exposing tensions at the top of Kyiv’s war effort.
The reshuffle lays bare a domestic strain Kyiv has largely kept hidden, as anti-corruption agencies probe figures close to the presidency and a sacked, popular minister positions himself as a rival. President Zelensky’s move to install a trusted security officer signals a desire for control at the defence ministry at a perilous moment, with Russian barrages intensifying and no ceasefire in sight. Mr Fedorov’s call for elections, constitutionally barred under martial law, is a pointed challenge that touches the legitimacy question Moscow likes to exploit. For a country at war, open political rivalry is both a luxury and a risk. Watch how Mr Zelensky manages the discontent and whether the graft inquiries widen.