The President of Ukraine, Volodimir Zelenski, could announce next week at the earliest the replacement of his current Minister of Defense, Oleksi Reznikov, affected in recent weeks by a corruption scandal in the portfolio he heads over the purchase of military rations, as confirmed by multiple official sources to several media in the country.
Zelenski has dismissed more than a dozen governors, deputy ministers and even a deputy advisor due to the alleged purchase of military rations at inflated prices by the Ministry of Defense.
Now, military and government sources have informed Ukrainska Pravda and the Kyiv Independent that Zelenski will soon announce the replacement of Reznikov by the head of Ukraine’s Military Intelligence agency Kirilo Budanov.
Zelenski, however, contemplates Reznikov’s dismissal from the government. The current head of Defense, after his replacement and according to the same sources, would move on to the Justice portfolio, whose current occupant, Denis Maliuska, would move on to an ambassadorial post in some unspecified European country.
In a first reaction to Ukrainska Pravda, Reznikov has denied any knowledge of an imminent replacement. «I have not had any talks about my resignation from this post,» he assured.
Zelensky described as «necessary» the wave of dismissals. «All internal issues that hinder the state are being eliminated and will continue to be eliminated. It is fair, it is necessary for our defense, and it helps our rapprochement with European institutions,» he said.
Ukraine has been the scene in the past of numerous corruption cases and Transparency International ranked it 122nd out of 180 in 2021 in its corruption perception survey. The fight against such crimes is also one of the key demands of the European Union (EU) in the framework of the process for its possible accession to the bloc, something firmly rejected by Russia.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
