President Volodymyr Zelensky has fired the Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, saying the ministry needs “new approaches” as the war enters its 19th month.
Zelensky said the parliament would be asked to make a personnel decision this week, saying that he had decided to replace the minister of defense of Ukraine.
“Oleksii Reznikov has gone through more than 550 days of full-scale war,” he said.
The CNN reports that Zelensky nominated Rustem Umerov, the former people’s deputy of Ukraine, to become the new defense minister.
“The Verkhovna Rada (legislature) of Ukraine knows this person well, and Mr. Umerov does not need any additional introductions. I expect parliament to support this candidate,” he said.
Reznikov, 57, has become a well-known figure since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Internationally recognised, he has regularly attended meetings with Ukraine’s western allies, and played a key role in lobbying for additional military equipment.
His dismissal comes amid a wider anti-corruption drive in Zelensky’s administration, with weeding out graft in the state seen as essential to Ukraine’s desire to join Western institutions like the EU, the BBC reports.
According to the Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, Ukraine ranks 116th out of 180, but efforts in recent years have seen its position improve significantly.
While Reznikov is not personally accused of corruption, there have been a number of scandals involving procurement at the ministry of defence over goods and equipment for the army.
