In recent months, there have been growing disagreements with the head of state. The former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, General Valery Zalouzhny, replaced in early February, has been appointed ambassador to the United Kingdom, a key ally of Kiev in its war against Russia, the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday. Foreign Affairs.
“The president approved the candidacy of Valery Zaluzhny for the post of extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom,” the ministry said in a statement, a month after this major change at the head of the Ukrainian forces.
“Our alliance with the United Kingdom can only strengthen,” President Volodymyr Zelensky stressed in his daily message, speaking about this decision. “Mr. Zalouzhny told me that he wanted to take the diplomatic route,” he assured.
“Understanding the military context”
The head of Ukrainian diplomacy, Dmytro Kouleba, welcomed this decision, deeming “the understanding of the military context” that Valery Zalouzhny has, according to him, necessary to be ambassador in London. At the end of February, the Ukrainian head of state replaced Valery Zalouzhny with Oleksandr Syrsky, a lesser-known general.
This measure, the subject of persistent rumors, followed the failure of kyiv’s counter-offensive in 2023 and against a backdrop of tensions between Volodymyr Zelensky and General Zalouzhny, a very popular military leader.
Valery Zalouzhny, 50, was appointed commander-in-chief in July 2021, a few months before the Russian invasion began in February 2022. In a statement after his dismissal, he stressed that his country’s military strategy had to “change and adapt” after two years of intense war, marked in recent months by a lack of ammunition and men in the forces. Ukrainians.
In the United Kingdom, Valery Zalouzhny will have to continue to convince London to support kyiv financially and militarily to face the Russian army, which is more numerous and which has been gaining ground on the front in recent weeks.
10,000 drones in kyiv
The same day, during a trip to kyiv, British Defense Minister Grant Shapps announced that London would deliver “more than 10,000 drones” to Ukraine in 2024, including attack drones.
The United Kingdom thus announced that it would release an additional 125 million pounds (146 million euros) for the supply of these “cutting edge” drones, bringing its aid to 325 million pounds (380 million euros). military for this equipment which he considers “very effective” in the fight of the Ukrainian forces against the Russian invasion.
“We continue our commitment to arm Ukraine with new cutting-edge drones, coming directly from British defense manufacturers, world leaders” in the sector, declared Grant Shapps, encouraging Kiev’s allies to do the same.