The Ukrainian president, Volodímir Zelenski, announced this Sunday the upcoming replacement of his Defense Minister, Olexí Réznikov, by Rustem Umerov. “I have decided to replace the defense minister of Ukraine,” Zelensky said in his evening address to the nation. “Olexí Reznikov has lived through more than 550 days of war. I think the ministry needs new approaches and new ways of interacting with the military and with civil society in general."
The figure of Reznikov had already been on the wire last February, when he was linked to various cases of corruption in public contracts, although he ultimately remained in office. Recently, he has been linked to a scandal related to a contract for military supplies signed with a Turkish company.
These news interfere with Zelensky's promises to strengthen the fight against corruption, an endemic problem in Ukraine, in compliance with the conditions imposed by the European Union to maintain Kyiv's status as a candidate for membership.
The news comes when the Ukrainian army's counteroffensive would have managed to penetrate deep into the Russian defense lines in southern Ukraine, according to one of its main generals in an interview with the British newspaper The Guardian. "'We are right now between the first and the second line of Russian defense,' says Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, head of the counteroffensive in the south," he explains in the interview, which takes place just a few days after Ukraine announced a symbolic victory with the recovery of the town of Robotine.
Volodimir Zelensky's government is embarking on a communication campaign to counter critics who believe that the counteroffensive against the Russians is progressing too slowly.
"We are now in the phase of destroying the enemy units in charge of protecting the Russian troops when they withdraw behind their second line of defense," the general assured. Tarnavsky led the troops that recaptured the city of Kherson a year ago.
According to this general, the Moscow forces “are simply waiting for the Ukrainian army. The enemy is depleting its reserves, not only in Ukraine, but in all of Russia. Sooner or later, the Russians are going to be left without their best soldiers. This will give us the opportunity to attack them with an advantage and faster.”
The military also explained that the Ukrainian army has advanced slowly in the counter-offensive, because "we have spent more time than expected demining the land that was occupied by the Russians."
“Unfortunately, the evacuation of the wounded has been difficult for us. And this has also complicated our advance,” says the general while admitting that Kyiv has suffered heavy losses. “The closer we get to victory, the more difficult it is. Because? Because unfortunately we lose the strongest and the best soldiers”. "Now we must concentrate on certain areas and finish the job"
