Zelenskyy replaces Ukraine’s top general in shake-up of military leadership

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Thursday that he had replaced his top general, a dramatic shake-up of the country’s military at a crucial moment in its war against Russia.

Zelenskyy’s decision to replace Army Cmdr. Valeriy Zaluzhnyi follows days of speculation and months of reported tension between the two over strategy, as Ukraine’s counteroffensive has faltered and Kyiv’s allies have displayed growing weariness about backing its cause.

“We openly discussed today what changes are needed in the army. Urgent changes,” Zelenskyy said in a Telegram post. “I proposed to General Zaluzhny to continue together in the team of the Ukrainian state. I will be grateful for his consent.”

He added that he had appointed Col. Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander of Ukraine’s ground forces, to lead the army.

It was unclear whether Zaluzhnyi was fired or he resigned, but in a statement on his Facebook page, he said he’d had “an important and serious conversation” with Zelenskyy, and “a decision has been made about the need to change approaches and strategy.”

A popular figure who came to embody Ukraine’s fighting spirit, Zaluzhnyi is widely respected both at home and abroad. In dispensing with him, Zelenskyy may sharpen the focus on his own leadership as Ukraine battles a new offensive from the Kremlin’s forces and doubts over the continued supply of military assistance from the United States and other governments.

Zaluzhnyi has been in charge of Ukraine’s army since before Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, and is credited by many in Ukraine and the West with playing a crucial role in the country’s surprise defensive stand, holding the Russians in check for nearly two years.

But rumors about Zaluzhnyi’s future