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So, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, has finally decided to fill the long-vacant vacancy in London by appointing Ukraine’s ex-Army Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi to this post. This is his prerogative. At first glance, I'm happy that this inexplicably long delay in filling this important post has been addressed. That a replacement for the previous very capable ambassador Vadym Prystaiko, dismissed in July 2023 at the whim of the president, has been identified. The UK, after all, has become, Ukraine’s major ally and maintaining diplomatic relations at the appropriate level is critical. There was no excuse for Zelensky and his...

It finally happened, Zelensky has let Zaluzhny go, replacing him with Syrsky: Defense Minister Umerov issued his own statement: There’s a lot to unpack. Let’s start with the mentions in the video above of needing a general who is on the frontline, and who understands the Avdeevka situation, as well as others, deeply. This appears to be a riff on the stereotype that Zelensky/Yermak and their team were trying to seed the ground with, characterizing Zaluzhny as someone who ‘never leaves his office’. These are just small, subtle threads in the narrative fabric they attempted to weave together to undermine...

Volodymyr Zelensky has finally succeeded in firing General Valery Zaluzhny. This time, according to reporting coming from Kiev, Zaluzhny has accepted the order and has thanked Ukrainians for their sacrifice. Zelensky will now fire most of the top brass in the army aligned with Zaluzhny. Choosing Syrsky is somewhat of a risk, because Syrsky and Zaluzhny are friends. On the other hand, Syrsky is not known for achieving victories. He is an older (58 years), plodding general who now commands the ground troops. It is the ground troops who are losing along the line of contact. No one can say...

The battle for Avdiivka, the Ukraine-held key town in Donetsk region, had another development as sources indicate that Russians forces broke through the defenses, and entered the town on the north side.Up until that point, most activity was centered in the south, where the besiegers have reached the outskirts of the urban area, and Kiev regime evacuated the civilian population.Pro-Ukrainian Journalist, Senior Editor Security Policy and Conflicts at German Paper BILD, Julian Röpke wrote in his X social media account that forces invading from the north secured a foothold inside the city:Russian invasion forces advanced appr. 1500 meters inside #Avdiivka,...

Ukraine’s embattled army chief has said the country cannot match Russia’s manpower without taking “unpopular measures”, in a veiled swipe at Volodymyr Zelensky. General Valery Zaluzhny called on his political masters to “seize the moment” as he alluded to Mr Zelensky’s reluctance to back his call for a military draft of up to 500,000 people. The popular general, who is expected to be sacked within days according to numerous reports, went public with his views in an op-ed for the US network CNN on Thursday. He wrote: “We must acknowledge the significant advantage enjoyed by the enemy in mobilising human...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rowed back on a threat to dismiss commander-in-chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi after the top general refused to resign and potential replacements declined to take on the role, according to media reports in the United Kingdom. According to British newspaper The Times, quoting high-ranking Ukrainian officers, Zaluzhnyi was summoned to a meeting with Zelenskyy on Monday, where he reportedly told presidential advisers that their assessment of the military situation was more positive than is really the case. The Guardian newspaper then quoted a Ukrainian opposition lawmaker's understanding that "yesterday the president asked Zaluzhnyi to resign but he...

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, is alleged to be directly communicating with certain commanders of Ukraine’s Armed Forces (UAF), and intentionally bypassing the Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny, Ukrainska Pravda (UP) reported on Monday citing anonymous sources. According to the sources quoted in an article entitled "The War against Politics. What is really going on between Zelensky and Zaluzhny", this behavior is undermining and impeding Zaluzhny's ability to effectively lead the UAF. “Sometimes there is an impression that Zelensky has two types of Armed Forces of Ukraine: the ‘good ones’ commanded by Syrsky and other favorites, and the ‘bad ones’ who obey Zaluzhny,"...

Five months into its counter-offensive, Ukraine has managed to advance by just 17 kilometres. Russia fought for ten months around Bakhmut in the east “to take a town six by six kilometres”. Sharing his first comprehensive assessment of the campaign with The Economist in an interview this week, Ukraine’s commander-in-chief, General Valery Zaluzhny, says the battlefield reminds him of the great conflict of a century ago. “Just like in the first world war we have reached the level of technology that puts us into a stalemate,” he says. The general concludes that it would take a massive technological leap to...

KYIV, Ukraine — For Ukraine’s counteroffensive to progress faster, Gen. Valery Zaluzhny, the top officer in Ukraine’s armed forces, says he needs more — of every weapon. And he is telling anyone who will listen, including his American counterpart Gen. Mark A. Milley as recently as Wednesday, that he needs those resources now....So it “pisses me off,” Zaluzhny said, when he hears that Ukraine’s long-awaited counteroffensive in the country’s east and south has started slower than expected......“Without being fully supplied, these plans are not feasible at all,” he added. “But they are being carried out. Yes, maybe not as fast...

Ukraine's long-awaited attempt to take back the territories in the east and south of the country, occupied by Russia for the past 18 months, is now in full swing. A key figure in planning and executing this operation is Gen Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraine's 49-year-old commander-in-chief. Little known until recently, his popularity now rivals that of President Volodymyr Zelensky. Gen Zaluzhny, or "our Valera" as friends and old classmates like to call him, was appointed commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian military in July 2021. (snip) Within seven months he was leading Ukraine's defence against full-scale invasion. (snip) The commander-in-chief became a national...

General Valerii Zaluzhny, appointed in July 2021 to be Ukraine’s chief of the armed forces, also became a member of Ukraine’s National Security Council. Zaluzhny mysteriously went missing some weeks ago. Now, apparently, he has reappeared, if you believe a brief video released by the Ukrainian government. There were many rumors about Zaluzhny. The earliest one was that he was killed, along with a number of other senior Ukrainian officers, in a meeting at a command post somewhere in eastern Ukraine. That rumor soon was followed by another – that in fact he was badly wounded at the same command...

“As a media personality, Zaluzhny was constantly in the lenses of the Ukrainian and Western media. He is second only to Zelenskyy in the intensity of his TV appearances”. “However, since May 8 no one has seen Zaluzhny. General Naev is present at all the events which require the personal participation of the Commander-in-Chief”. “Even at the regular meeting of the heads of the military departments in Ramstein, where the critical issues of the supply of weapons and ammunition necessary for the upcoming counterattack were discussed for Ukraine, Zaluzhny did not participate even in the online format”.

At the same time, analysts confirm that on May 7 and 8 among the facilities struck by Russia was the headquarters, where one of the commanders of the Ukrainian army was located.The authors do not rule out that Zaluzhny’s refusal to attend the NATO summit may be related to the consequences of the shelling.Earlier, the head of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, said that Zaluzhny would not be able to join the committee meeting due to the difficult operational situation on the front.

ransomnote: This 40 minute video is an analysis of an interview in The Economist which featured General Zaluzhny, Colonel Syrskyi, and Zelenksy. I'll put some transcript hi-lights in Post #1. Basically Zaluzhny and Syrskyi say that the Ukraine will lose unless NATO provides vast amounts of military hardware and troops. They say Putin has been successful in raising troops and can field 1.5 million additonal troops at a time when Zelensky has approx 700,000 troops but only 200,000 have combat training.The video narrators note there is a weakening of support for Zelensky's continued requests for more money and arms, and...

A particularly good discussion focusing heavily on Zaluzhny's shocking Economist interview. Ritter shares The Duran analysts views (as does Judge Napolitano) that I already posted a few hours ago though goes into it more thoroughly. He thinks that Zelensky is history and that General Zaluzhny will be the one negotiating the terminal settlement (and hopes to be the next Ukrainian president.) One of the most interesting points is why this interview was set up. Clearly Britain and the U.S. wanted these disclosures made at this time. Ritter believes it is because they want this settled before Russia can take Odessa...