NEW YORK, February 1. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is expected to sign a decree on the resignation of top military commander Valery Zaluzhny by the end of this week, CNN reported, citing sources.
According to it, the Ukrainian commander-in-chief was summoned to the office of the Ukrainian president on January 29, where the head of state announced his imminent dismissal. Zelensky offered the top military commander another post, but he refused.
According to CNN sources, Head of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR), Kirill Budanov, and Commander of the Ukrainian military’s ground forces Alexander Syrsky, are named as possible successors to Zaluzhny. The Ukrainian military intelligence chief said that he would not communicate with journalists on such a matter in the conditions of hostilities, citing the fact that "all sides are using all available means, including information warfare." Syrsky's office did not respond to the TV channel's request for comment.
Situation around Zaluzhny
On Monday, former Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament) lawmaker Borislav Bereza said that Zaluzhny had been removed from the post of Ukrainian top military commander. According to him, the presidential administration received indignant calls from foreign partners in this regard. For his part, Verkhovna Rada lawmaker Alexey Goncharenko (listed as a terrorist and extremist by Russia's Federal Service for Financial Monitoring) said that Zaluzhny had been informed of his resignation, but there was no corresponding decree. Later, Ukrainian presidential spokesman Sergey Nikiforov said that Zelensky had not fired Zaluzhny.
However, speculation about Zaluzhny's fate continues in Ukrainian media and social networks. On Wednesday, The Washington Post reported, citing high-level sources in Kiev, that Zaluzhny would remain in his post for the time being, but that the decision on his resignation had already been made.
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there were many questions about the news about Zaluzhny, but it was clear that the Kiev regime was "not doing well." Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the situation surrounding the dismissal of the Ukrainian commander-in-chief reflects the agony and disintegration of Ukraine's statehood.