Ukraine’s ousted defence minister calls for elections during war

xwhatsapp-strokecopylinkgoogleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfoplay videoplay videoVideo Duration 01 minutes 11 seconds play-arrow01:11Ousted Ukraine defence minister calls for elections despite wartime ban

Ukraine’s former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections in the biggest internal challenge President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.

In a bombshell address posted on YouTube on Tuesday, Fedorov said democracy in Ukraine “cannot be held hostage by Russia”.

He said the country needs to find “a legal, safe and realistic mechanism” to restart its full democratic process “even in the conditions of a long war”.

Ukrainian law currently bars elections during wartime, and no major political figure has publicly pushed back on that since the invasion began in 2022.

The 35-year-old Fedorov was a longtime ally of Zelenskyy’s until his unexpected firing from the Defence Ministry in July, just six months after his appointment.

The dismissal sparked protests across the country.

During his brief tenure, Fedorov had built a reputation as a reformer willing to publicly challenge the military establishment, a profile that has since fuelled speculation over whether he could emerge as a genuine political rival to Zelenskyy.

His removal is widely believed to have followed tension with armed forces commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskii, who was himself replaced weeks later after sustained public pressure and weeks of demonstrations calling for Fedorov’s reinstatement.

Fedorov used the video to argue that Ukraine is facing a “systemic crisis of governance”, describing institutions that are “scared of change” and pointing to corruption as a factor undermining the country’s war effort, though he did not mention Zelenskyy by name.

Fedorov’s call for elections is the first such demand by a major Ukrainian political figure since Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

The president’s office has yet to issue a statement on Fedorov’s latest remarks.

Zelenskyy’s term ended in May 2024, but the country has postponed its presidential election due to continuing martial law.

Zelenskyy has since installed Yevhenii Khmara, a career intelligence official with a low public profile, as acting defence minister.

Fedorov was reportedly offered other roles in government, including deputy prime minister for military innovation, but has said he would only return as defence minister.

Hours ahead of Fedorov’s address, Zelenskyy confirmed he had asked parliament to confirm Khmara in office on Wednesday.

Protests in support of Fedorov have continued for the past month, losing some of their early momentum but still regularly drawing a couple thousand attendees in Kyiv.