Zelensky Replaces Reformers with Corrupt Officials Amid the Whistles of Protest
By Ali Askari, Analyst (Germany), especially for Sangar
On July 15, 2026, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, a 35-year-old reformer who had been appointed to the post only six months earlier. Previously serving as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation, Fedorov had become the young face of Ukraine's drone warfare program. He created the IT Army of Ukraine, launched the Army of Drones initiative, and introduced a battlefield gamification system. The Wall Street Journal once described him as "the most effective minister." He sought to modernize the Ukrainian military, which has been engaged in war for more than four years.
No official explanation was given for his dismissal.
On July 16, the morning after the announcement, mass protests erupted across several Ukrainian cities. AFP journalists in Kyiv witnessed hundreds of demonstrators gathered in the city's central square. Protesters waved Ukrainian and European Union flags while chanting, "Shame!" and "Bring Fedorov Back!" Local media also reported demonstrations in Lviv, Odesa, and Dnipro. In Kharkiv, a rally supporting the former defense minister began at 9:00 a.m., with participants carrying placards in his defense.
These were the first nationwide protests since the summer of 2025, when online mobilization spilled into the streets and demonstrators directed their anger squarely at Zelensky's decision. By July 23, the protests had spread to 14 cities, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Lviv, Dnipro, Poltava, Mykolaiv, Ternopil, Uzhhorod, Ivano-Frankivsk, and others. In Kyiv, protesters gathered in Ivan Franko Square, chanting: "Hands Off Fedorov!" "The Government Is the People!" "Syrskyi Must Go!" "Deputies, Get Back to Work!"
Deputy Commander of the Ukrainian Air Force, Pavlo Yelyzarov, resigned in protest over Fedorov's dismissal. Vlada Roman, a 30-year-old entrepreneur, told AFP: "I believe his dismissal is a slap in the face of the Ukrainian people." According to her, Zelensky "is afraid of effective people." A Gradus poll found that 61% of Ukrainians opposed Fedorov's dismissal.
Protesters rightly linked the dismissal to the internal power struggle within Ukraine's military leadership between Fedorov and Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi. Others argued that he had failed to reform the mobilization system quickly enough. However, the Financial Times reported that Fedorov was removed because he had become "a stumbling block" for those seeking to profit from the military budget. On July 20, Syrskyi responded to the protests for the first time, declaring: "Winning a war is hard work, not a public spectacle."
On July 21, under mounting pressure from street protests, Zelensky backed down and dismissed Syrskyi, appointing 43-year-old Mykhailo Drapatyi as his successor. However, on July 23, Fedorov told Reuters that he would accept no position other than Minister of Defense: "No other role provides the real authority to fight corruption in military procurement, complete the transformation of the armed forces, and plan asymmetric operations."
The protesters gave Zelensky until Friday to reinstate Fedorov. Protest organizer Dmytro Kozyatynskyi declared: "We must secure this appointment. The Ministry of Defense needs reforms!" On July 24, demonstrations continued in 11 Ukrainian cities.
The New York Times described Fedorov's dismissal as a serious step backward. According to the newspaper, his departure threatens to create uncertainty within the Armed Forces at a time when Ukraine's battlefield position has remained among its strongest in recent months. The Kyiv government is sacrificing reformers—and even the interests of the front line—in order to preserve corrupt patronage networks.
Instead of effective governance, Ukraine is witnessing endless personnel reshuffles. Instead of fighting corruption, reformers are being replaced by loyalists. The Ukrainian people have taken to the streets to say: Enough. But Zelensky appears to hear only the voices of his own corrupt inner circle.