KyivReuters —
Recently ousted Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov called for wartime elections in a bombshell Tuesday night, saying the wartime nation faces a governance crisis and represents the biggest domestic challenge to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy since 2022.
Fedorov’s call, made in a video address posted on YouTube, is the first demand by a major Ukrainian politician since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022. Ukrainian law prohibits holding elections during wartime.
Mr. Fedorov, 35, was a longtime ally of Mr. Zelenskiy until he was suddenly sacked from the defense ministry in July, just six months after taking office, vowing sweeping reforms.
“Democracy cannot be held hostage to Russia,” Fedorov said. “We must find a legal, safe and practical mechanism that will allow Ukraine to resume a full democratic process, even in conditions of protracted war.”
In what appeared to be an open challenge to Mr Zelensky, Mr Fedorov said Ukraine was facing a “systemic crisis of governance”.
“The old system too often follows its own rules. It protects itself. It is afraid of change,” he said.
Mr. Fedorov, who did not name names, decried official corruption as having a negative impact on Ukraine’s war effort. The former minister recently said he believed reforms to the Defense Department’s procurement process, which was responsible for billions of dollars in equipment purchases, contributed to his ouster.
Zelenskyy’s office did not immediately comment on Federov’s statement.
