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Ukrainian Defense Ministry reshuffle aims to keep intel chief away from finances — expert

According to Mikhail Pavliv, Budanov has set his sights on becoming the commander of Ukraine’s armed forces

MOSCOW, October 16. /TASS/. New deputies were appointed to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry because of a lack of trust for how money was being spent within the military, former Ukrainian political scientist Mikhail Pavliv told TASS.

On October 1, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov made some changes to his department. He asked the government to dismiss three of his deputies. One of these deputies, Stanislav Gaider, was promoted to a position in the minister’s office, serving as its head. On October 11, the Ukrainian government appointed two new deputies to the Ukrainian defense ministry. The reasons for the reshuffle were not disclosed.

"Two [dismissed] deputies were put in charge of the budget. This - all the fuel, equipment repairs - is a huge amount of money. The whole affair revolves around cutting off Budanov’s access to financial resources and limiting his influence in this area. It’s about a power struggle over money," Pavliv said, citing Ukrainian sources.

According to the expert, Budanov has set his sights on becoming the commander of Ukraine’s armed forces. "Budanov recently expressed his interest in taking over the post of the top military commander. However, last winter, when [former top Ukrainian military commander Valery] Zaluzhny was dismissed, he didn’t push for the position. The dismissal of [current top Ukrainian military commander Alexander] Syrsky is inevitable, and Budanov has already asked Western countries to support him," the political scientist said.

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