Former Ukrainian commander-in-chief General Valery Zalouzhny, replaced in early February, has been appointed ambassador to the United Kingdom, Kiev's key ally in its war against Russia, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday.
“The president approved the candidacy of Valery Zalouzhny for the post of extraordinary and plenipotentiary ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom
,” the ministry said in a statement, a month after this major change at the head of the army Ukrainian.
To discover
Follow information on the war in Ukraine with the Figaro application
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had appointed Oleksandr Syrsky, a lesser-known general, as his replacement.
His decision, the subject of persistent rumors, followed the failure of kyiv's counter-offensive in 2023 and against a backdrop of tensions between Mr. Zelensky and Zalouzhny, a very popular military leader.
Valery Zalouzhny, 50, was appointed commander-in-chief in July 2021, a few months before the start of the Russian invasion launched in February 2022.
Ukrainian army must “change and adapt”, says Zaluzhny
In a press release after his dismissal, he assured that the strategy of the Ukrainian army must
“change and adapt”
after two years of intense war, marked in recent months by a lack of ammunition and men for the forces of Kiev.
In the United Kingdom, Valery Zalouzhny will have to continue to convince London to support kyiv financially and militarily to face the Russian army, which is more numerous and which has been gaining ground on the front in recent weeks.
On Thursday, Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed British Defense Minister Grant Shapps to Kiev, notably to
“strengthen Ukraine's air defense and long-range capabilities, as well as respond to other urgent air defense needs. 'arms and ammunition'
, in the words of the Ukrainian president.