Ukraine’s Tensions on Show after Zelenskyy Reshuffles His War Leaders

Crisis Group expert Lucian Kim assesses the reasons behind the dismissal of the defence minister and armed forces chief, and what this bodes for the war with Russia.

By naming a new commander of Ukraine’s armed forces on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy may have defused a political crisis of his own making. While the impact of the change on the war is still unclear, this latest personnel shift underlines Ukraine’s domestic political challenges in its fifth year of full-scale fighting.

The crisis began on 15 July, when Zelenskyy sacked Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, sparking protests on the streets of Kyiv and other cities calling for his reinstatement. Both Zelenskyy and Fedorov said the dismissal stemmed from a feud between the defence minister and Oleksandr Syrskyi, head of Ukraine’s military since February 2024. In response, protesters began to demand Syrskyi’s ouster as well.

The firing of Fedorov followed Zelenskyy’s removal on 12 July of Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko after less than a year in office. She was replaced by Serhiy Koretskyi, previously an energy executive. But if Svyrydenko’s departure had been rumoured for some time, Fedorov’s came as a surprise. Though only in office for six months, Fedorov had gained plaudits in Ukraine and abroad as a reformer, and was given credit for the success of recent innovations in drone tactics. As protests mounted, Fedorov publicly accused Syrskyi of having blocked his reform efforts. The defence minister’s supporters attacked the general as a rigid Soviet-style commander, whose battlefield assaults came at a high cost to Ukrainian soldiers. In his announcement of Syrskyi’s removal, the president failed to give any reason for the change.

Zelenskyy appointed Yevheniy Khmara, a special ops officer at the head of the SBU security service, as the acting defence minister until parliament can confirm a permanent replacement. In place of Syrskyi, Mykhailo Drapatyi – a decorated general more than a decade Syrskyi’s junior, who openly backed Fedorov after he was fired – will take command of Ukraine’s armed forces. 

It’s not clear whether this latest shakeup will alter the course of the war in the near term. Ukraine is unlikely to give up its middle and deep strike campaign that aims to disrupt Russia’s energy industry, cut off supplies to Russian-occupied Crimea and “bring the war home” to ordinary Russians. Ukraine’s path-breaking approach to drone warfare, meanwhile, preceded Fedorov and is not likely to fizzle out because of his departure.

Even with its impact on the front lines unknown, this episode belies simmering tensions in Ukrainian society, many of them linked to the war effort. Despite all its drones, the country still faces chronic shortages of combat troops and the money to raise soldiers’ pay. Ukrainians are increasingly angry over at times brutal mobilisation methods and persistent allegations of corruption in Zelenskyy’s entourage. 

Zelenskyy may have found a fix for the moment, but he faces serious risks. It is Fedorov who is associated with Ukraine’s new momentum on the battlefield, and if Ukraine faces new setbacks, Zelenskyy will carry the blame. At the same time, he has created a potential new domestic rival out of his ex-minister.