The Kremlin assured this Wednesday that the new change in the leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine demonstrates that this "regime is wobbling from within" and insisted that it will not have repercussions on the situation at the front.
The presidential spokesperson, Dimitri Peskov, initially avoided commenting on the departure of Oleksandr Sirski from the head of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, although he finally emphasized "that it is evident" that "the regime in Kiev is wobbling from within".
In the same vein, Peskov ruled out that the dismissal of Sirski and the appointment of Mijailo Drapati as the new commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine "will provoke any change at the front," where, he stressed, what is happening "is well known".
"Our Armed Forces continue with offensive operations along the entire front, within the framework of the special military operation, and it is evident that all these disturbances are evidence that the regime in Kiev is wobbling," the spokesperson stated at a press conference, according to the TASS agency.
The renewed Ukrainian military leadership took office this Wednesday, after President Volodimir Zelenski surprised with the dismissal of Oleksandr Sirski the day before and, days earlier, with that of Mijailo Fedorov, who left the position of Minister of Defense amid reproaches to the previous head of the Army.
The disagreements between Sirski and Fedorov, latent since the latter took over the Defense portfolio six months ago, were an open secret. The departure of the minister made it visible to public opinion that the two could only communicate through Zelenski's mediation, who had already warned that this situation was incompatible with the goal of winning the war.
Although the dismissal of Fedorov was part of a broader cabinet reshuffle, which included the replacement of the prime minister, the decision was poorly received by part of the citizenry, who saw him as one of the architects of several advances on the battlefield and took to the streets to show their rejection.
Those gatherings, in which hundreds of people participated, not only defended the figure of the young Fedorov but also questioned the chain of changes at the head of the Ministry of Defense, which has already had five different heads since the beginning of the Russian invasion in February 2022.
With the dismissal of Sirski, Zelenski aims to close an episode that threatened to cast doubts on the cohesion and capacity of Ukrainian defense, at a time when from Kiev they emphasize that the conflict is entering a decisive phase.