Former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said he suggested "drastic personnel decisions," which involved replacing both Syrskyi and General Staff Chief Andrii Hnatov, both of whom are criticized by younger soldiers and commanders for their top-down, Soviet-era command culture.
The latest attack on oil infrastructure in Russia's capital region comes exactly one month after Ukrainian forces launched their largest-ever drone attack on Moscow, striking the Moscow Oil Refinery on June 18.
Ukrainian drones targeted the town of Kotovsk in Russia's Tambov Oblast overnight on July 18, resulting in a fire at a Russian online retailer's warehouse, monitoring channels reported.
One person was killed, and eight others were injured, including two children, after Russian munitions struck a passenger car in the Shevchenkivskyi district of Kharkiv Oblast on July 17.
"I cannot stand idly by with my knowledge, as only the enemy benefits from that. The President is giving me the opportunity and authority to strengthen our defense capabilities at the highest level as an Advisor," Serhii "Flash" Beskrestnov said.
President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Oleksandr Poklad, former senior deputy of Ukraine's Security Service (SBU), as acting head in a decree issued July 17, as the Cabinet of Ministers tapped Maksym Tsutskiridze as temporary head of Ukraine's National Police.
Key developments on July 17: * Cabinet appoints Yvhen Khmara as acting defense minister after day of uncertainty * Ukraine strikes oil refinery in Russia's Yaroslavl Oblast, vessels in Black, Azov seas, among other targets, General Staff says * Ukrainian drones strike 12 Russian 'shadow fleet' vessels in Black Sea as Crimea comes under large-scale attack * Russian Tu-95 bomber suffered 'critical damage' in strike on Engels air base, Zelensky says * Ukrainian drone units strike over 1 milli
The Kyiv Independent's coverage of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, after eight years of aggression against Ukraine that began in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea and fighting in Donbas. The war has resulted in tens of thousands of military and civilian casualties and displaced millions of Ukrainians. NATO and Western allies have provided military aid to Ukraine while the conflict continues across fronts in Ukraine’s south and east.
This is a developing story and is being updated. President Volodymyr Zelensky's dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister has drawn a wave of criticism from soldiers, veterans, and civil society figures, who argue Ukraine is losing one of its most effective wartime officials without an adequate explanation. Dmytro Koziatynskyi, a war veteran who was a leading organizer of last summer's mass protests against a law curbing the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption agencies, called fo
