Firing of Ukraine’s Defense Minister Shocks Nation, Delights Foes

Ukrainians reacted in shock Thursday to the surprise dismissal of their 35-year-old defense minister. In barely six months on the job, Mykhailo Fedorov, a ‘tech bro’ in a T-shirt, cut deals with Elon Musk and impressed politicians and business executives across Europe, Ukraine’s main source of military aid. Putting Ukraine’s drone warfare on steroids, Mr. Fedorov masterminded a long-range campaign that now is cutting Russia’s gasoline supply in half, blockading the Russia-controlled peninsula of Crimea, and seriously cramping Russian oil and wheat exports through the Black Sea.Thursday, Ukrainians learned that their IT hero had lost a bureaucratic turf battle with Oleksandr Syrskyi, Ukraine’s 60-year-old Soviet-trained commander-in-chief. Immediately, protesters gathered in at least nine Ukrainian cities. Visible from President Volodymyr Zelensky’s office window in Kyiv, protesters waved homemade cardboard signs and chanted “Fedorov, Fedorov.”Two blocks away, members of Ukraine’s parliament, or Rada, voted to approve all of Mr. Zelensky’s choices for a new Cabinet — except for the defense minister and foreign minister. The Rada will vote on those posts after it returns from a month-long summer break.“A country at war without a real defense minister,” fumed Ukrainian news site Noel Reports. Another news site, the Kyiv Independent, followed with a skeptical news story: “Zelensky turned one of his biggest victories into one of his biggest blunders.” A hostile editorial followed: “By sacking Fedorov, Zelensky risks turning tide of war back in Russia’s favor.” From the other side, Russian war bloggers celebrated the removal of a young Ukrainian who had put Russia’s war effort on the back foot. “Overall, it’s very good that Zelensky removed him from command of the army,” a Russian military commentator, Aleksei Zhivov, posted. Calling Mr. Fedorov “a far too smart and effective an enemy,” he predicted: “Things should get easier now.”Another pro-war Telegram channel, Informant, posted: “The fact that Zelensky removed such a prolific and dangerous — for Russia — figure from a leadership position is very good [for Moscow], especially considering that his resignation will most likely also lead to a purge of Fedorov’s people from the structure of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry.”Several Russian bloggers speculated that Mr. Zelensky was jealous of his defense minister’s popularity and suspected that he might have presidential ambitions.In his defense, Mr. Zelensky said that relations between the defense minister and the commander in chief had become so poisonous that they could no longer speak to each other face to face. “Without me, they won’t sit down together — they have a conflict,” he told reporters.Regarding the street protests, he said, “I understand, I hear, and I respond to what society is saying. We are fighting for freedom and democracy. People are doing what they want. They wanted to come out — and they were right to do so.”Ukraine’s outgoing defense minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, speaks to journalists at Kyiv, Ukraine on July 16, 2026. Dan Bashakov/APMr. Fedorov gave an angry press conference where he accused the commander-in-chief of “weaving intrigues behind the scenes” and of constantly blocking his initiatives. He said: “I don’t need the position of Minister of Defense in order to be the Minister of Defense. I need the position of Minister of Defense in order to win the war. In the current setup where Syrskyi is the Commander-in-Chief, I don’t see how this can be done.”“Instead of working out how to asymmetrically defeat Russia, he has worked out how to split the country,” Mr. Fedorov charged. He said drone technology and warfare is constantly evolving, implying that General Syrskyi, a 1986 graduate of Moscow Higher Military Command School, cannot keep up.Addressing the thorny issue of recruitment, Mr. Fedorov said Ukraine needs to take a more humane approach, allowing recruits to choose their units and to sign contracts with defined end dates. He criticized the current “authoritarian” system “with a club.” This led to backlash, including the burning of a military recruiter’s car by an angry crowd in Lviv last week. He said one goal of expanding drone warfare to land, sea and air is to pull soldiers out of harm’s way. After this attack, General Syrskyi issued a short statement thanking Mr. Fedorov for his work as defense minister and saying that Ukraine needs to focus on the war. He did not respond to the criticisms.Over the last year, the Trump administration cut off almost all military aid to Ukraine. Mr. Zelensky made a sharp pivot to Europe, developing close relations with political and arms industry leaders. From Davos to Munich, Mr. Fedorov became a familiar face to Europeans as he negotiated a series of ‘Drone Deals.’ Generally, Europe and Ukraine research and develop drones together and production takes place in the relative safety of a NATO nation.Mr. Fedorov’s dismissal was a major surprise to one of his European interlocutors, the European Union commissioner for defence and space, Andrius Kubilius. He said: “We have been working very closely with Mykhailo Fedorov — both before and especially after he took over the Ministry of Defence. During this period, we have achieved a great deal.”Mr. Fedorov leaves office after seven years working in Zelensky governments, largely as minister for digital transformation. Although he said Thursday that he remains friends with Ukraine’s president, he declined to stay on as an adviser. Reportedly, he turned down an offer to be prime minister.To keep the war effort on track, Mr. Zelensky said he has appointed Yevhen Khmara to serve as acting defense minister until the Rada can approve the nomination in August. A former special operations commander with Ukraine’s State Security Service, Major General Khmara has experience in planning and conducting long-range strikes into Russia.

Firing of Ukraine’s Defense Minister Shocks Nation, Delights Foes

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