Protests and criticism erupted across Ukraine after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy replaced popular Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. A dispute between the now former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov and Kyiv's top general is spilling into public, after Volodymyr Zelenskyy orders a second reshuffle of this year. President says he had to choose ‘one side or the other’ after breakdown of relations between ministry and military leadersEurope live – latest updatesUkraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has defended his decision to dismiss the country’s popular defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, and confirmed reports that relations had broken down between the ministry and the country’s top army leadership.Speaking at a press conference in Kyiv with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, Zelenskyy said there had been a “challenging dialogue” between Fedorov – widely seen as a reformist and moderniser – and the military’s commander in chief, Col Gen Oleksandr Syrskyi.
With demonstrators shouting “Shame!” and “Power to the people!”, rare protests erupted in several Ukrainian cities on Thursday over the dismissal of the country’s popular defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Seen as a moderniser, Fedorov was removed by President Volodymyr Zelensky after only six months in the job in what many see as a result of infighting within the Ukrainian military. Ukraine's ousted defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov served just six months before his ambitious drive to reform the military led to irreconcilable clashes with the country's top brass, which he viewed as out of date, inflexible and mired in bureaucracy.
Fedorov's early bet on drone warfare was a game-changer as Ukraine faced off against a more formidable opponent.
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