2024-09-05 09:53:36
The President of Ukraine will present to Biden a plan to defeat Russia
Ukraine is bracing for decisive fighting this fall, and ahead of an important visit to the United States, President Volodymyr Zelensky has carried out the biggest purge of the upper echelons of power since Russia launched the war in 2022.
Since Tuesday, the resignations of key leaders have been raining in the Ukrainian parliament, which is considered only the beginning of major changes. The Minister of Strategic Industry, Oleksandr Kamishin, who was responsible for the production of weapons, the Minister of Justice, Denis Malyuska, and the Minister of the Environment, Ruslan Strilets, are leaving.
Yesterday it became clear that even the foreign minister – Dmytro Kuleba, is leaving
together with the president Zelensky led Ukraine in the war
right from the beginning. After Zelensky, 43-year-old Kuleba was Kiev’s most prominent face on the international stage, meeting world leaders and lobbying for military and political support. He did all this in perfect English, noted Western publications.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Reintegration of the Temporarily Occupied Territories Irina Vereshchuk, as well as Deputy Prime Minister for Euro-Atlantic Integration Olga Stefanishina, also resigned. Vitaly Koval, the head of the State Property Fund, also officially asked to resign from his post.
The Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk, announced the resignations received. He explained that at the first meeting of the people’s representatives, which was already on Wednesday, every single resignation must be voted on. It was thought to be just a formality.
However, Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada did not muster a majority to support all the resignations. Vitaly Koval – the head of the State Property Fund – will remain in his post. One deputy failed to remove him from the position he has held since November 21, 2023. Before that, from 2019, Koval headed the Rivne Regional State Administration.
However, the Verkhovna Rada supported with 243 votes the resignation of Oleksandr Kamishin as Minister of Strategic Industries. He previously announced that he would continue to work in the defense sector, but in a different role.
A high-ranking ally of Zelensky described what was happening as
“restart” on the government
before winter sets in. The Ukrainian president was adamant that changes in power were necessary to achieve the results demanded by Kiev. “Autumn will be extremely important for Ukraine. Our state institutions must be configured so that Ukraine achieves all the results we need – for all of us,” Zelensky said. His comments came amid an upcoming trip to the US later in September. During it, the Ukrainian leader will meet with his key overseas ally – President Joe Biden. Zelensky is preparing to present to his American counterpart a plan for victory against Russia.
The Kremlin assured that the changes in the Ukrainian government will not affect the process of peace negotiations in any way. Either way, peace seems a distant prospect for now as there is a lack of common ground between the leaders’ demands. Russia is advancing in eastern Ukraine, while Ukrainian troops made a surprise move by advancing decisively into Russia’s Kursk region. Against this backdrop, Moscow has stepped up its drone strikes in recent weeks, resulting in daily civilian casualties. On Tuesday, 50 people were killed after a Russian strike on the central city of Poltava, and early Wednesday another Russian shelling of Lviv was reported. Another 7 people died with him, including a mother and her three daughters. Rockets also hit a baby and a little girl.