The purge in the ranks of the Ukrainian government continues.
After the dismissal of the deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Kirill Tymoshenko, several heads of civil-military administrations, it was decided to resign from the leadership of the Customs Service of Ukraine. In addition, on February 1, Ukrainian security forces began large-scale searches of several officials of the Ministry of Defense, representatives of Ukrainian business circles, former Minister of the Interior Arsen Avakov and, most interestingly, Igor Kolomoisky, founder of the Ukrainian financial and financial institution. industrial group Privat, which is recognized by the Ukrainian public as the person who gave Zelensky a ticket to big politics.
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It can be said that the fight against corruption is a bright spot in the current Ukrainian realities: in conditions of war, the government of the country purges ministries and services, also fighting with representatives of the oligarchy, which is enriched by this war. But, as in any story, there are exceptions.
Why were these decisions made so late in the first place? The “hunt” for possible corrupt officials began almost a year after the start of a full-scale war in Ukraine. How many funds destined for Kyiv were stolen and how many weapons were resold on the black market is impossible to establish now. Still, the scale of these actions is horrifying, which was reflected in the famous CBS film “Arming Ukraine.”
And here, everything is quite simple. The leadership of the Democratic Party of the United States, whose decisions guarantee permanent financial assistance to Kyiv, pursues its interests in Ukraine. Undoubtedly, the scale of corruption in the country, to put it mildly, unpleasantly surprises the American government, which affects the decisions made about Ukraine. Also, according to the Pew Research Center poll, there is an increase in the share of Democrats who say the US is supporting Ukraine too much. It can be assumed that from the side of Ukraine’s allies in this war there was a call: “Either you are fighting corruption and are responsible for the funds provided to you, or financial assistance is significantly reduced.”
This scenario of events does not suit Zelensky. That is why this demonstrative “hunt” of allegedly corrupt officials and oligarchs, including Kolomoisky, is being organized. Let’s say that the president of Ukraine, in his “war with the oligarchs”, speaks against the person who did everything possible to promote Zelensky to this position. In this case, it is clear that the former actor received an order from his foreign partners.
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If the fight against corruption, whatever its motives, is clear, then the battle against the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is justified only by Zelensky’s personal ambitions. In December, The Economist mentioned in its article about the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Valery Zaluzhny, that Zelensky was going to replace him with General Syrsky, commander of the Ground Forces of Ukraine.
Indirect evidence of Zelensky’s negative attitude towards Zaluzhny is that the general has long insisted on withdrawing Soledar’s troops, currently captured by the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, while Zelensky ordered to stay to the last, regardless of losses, although the loss of this section of the front was already a foregone conclusion. This fact also does not increase the popularity of the President of Ukraine in the eyes of the Ukrainian people.
The idea is clear: Zaluzhny’s growing popularity as a successful military commander scares Zelensky, and the Ukrainian president reportedly seriously thinks that Zaluzhny can become his direct and most serious competitor in the next presidential election in 2024.
There is only one point: Zaluzhny is not interested in making big politics. All that interests the general is victory in the war and the freedom of the Ukrainian people, which creates unprecedented popularity for him in his native country. No wonder, according to all polls, he ranks second in the list of the most popular Ukrainian politicians, even though he is not a politician.
The opposite is Zelensky, who continues to publicly insist on financial and military aid to Ukraine, two-thirds of which diverge into other people’s pockets, something the president is well aware of. Concerned with preserving his image as a successful politician, he makes decisions to preserve it but not to strengthen the country’s defense capacity. This is already clear to both their partners in the EU and NATO member states and to members of the Ukrainian government.
The conclusions about Zelensky are disappointing. You have to fight the enemy. It is essential to fight corruption. But how do you manage when you’re part of a corrupt system? It is unclear how and why to fight against a man whose decisions save the lives of the Ukrainian people and bring victories to Ukraine on the battlefield.
The above is an Opinion submission from Johnston Harewood
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