Zelensky eyes replacing Defense Minister Fedorov, source says
on Google
President Volodymyr Zelensky is considering replacing Mykhailo Fedorov as defense minister, a senior Ukrainian official familiar with the matter told the Kyiv Independent.
It is unclear whether Fedorov will get a new position within the Ukrainian government or who would replace him as defense minister.
"Fedorov and the President spoke alone; no one else heard them: That's why I don't know, and neither do the others," one Ukrainian official said.
Fedorov is viewed as one of the most trusted political figures in Ukraine, according to recent polling. A Kyiv International Institute of Sociology poll conducted in May 2026 found 50% of respondents trust Fedorov, while 21% did not.
A decision to replace a popular figure widely seen as competent would likely prove controversial with both Ukrainian politicians and wider Ukrainian society.
"Fedorov hasn't even been in office for a year. He's not the worst defense minister. At least he's not just a money-grabber," one Ukrainian lawmaker from Zelensky's Servant of the People faction told the Kyiv Independent, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Fedorov's office declined to comment.
Fedorov's advisor, well-known Ukrainian influencer and fundraiser Serhii Sternenko, claimed that Fedorov was subjected to "information attacks" on Telegram after he confronted corrupt practices in the Defense Ministry.
"You can't even imagine what streams of funding have been cut off," Sternenko wrote in a post on X. "These offended passengers have networks of (Telegram) channels, influence in parliament and more. So you'll see a lot more dirt."
Got an opinion on anything you've read in the Kyiv Independent so far?
and it may appear in our Letters section.
Fedorov’s wins and losses
A relatively young and popular figure in the Ukrainian government, Fedorov previously served as a deputy prime minister and minister of digital transformation from 2019 to March 2023. On March 21, his brief was expanded to deputy prime minister for innovation, education, science, and technology, and on July 17, 2025, he was again promoted to first deputy prime minister, a title he held until he was tapped for the role of defense minister.
Fedorov's appointment as defense minister drew rare support from both Zelensky's party and the opposition. Some lawmakers from the opposition European Solidarity party previously described him as one of the few officials in Zelensky's team who maintained regular contact with the opposition.
If he maintains a seat in government, his reappointment, however, may face obstacles. One opposition lawmaker said Fedorov "stopped responding to lawmakers' messages" after taking office.
"It angered a lot of people," they told the Kyiv Independent. "The broader issue, I think, is that (Fedorov) has dragged out the mobilization reform for too long. And there is still no clarity on it."
"Lawmakers have very different expectations. Some want mobilization to stop, while others want fixed service terms and troop rotations. But it's simply impossible to deliver all of that at the same time."
On July 10, one parliamentary faction received a letter from Fedorov asking lawmakers to submit their proposals on mobilization.
"It seems he realized at some point that he needed to engage. The question is whether it's too late," the lawmaker said.
Despite the seemingly strained relations with some in parliament, Fedorov's efforts within the last six months have been praised by observers and military experts.
Shortly after he began his tenure, he successfully persuaded SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to deny Russia usage of the highly effective Starlink satellite communications system in February 2026.
Musk had originally activated the system in response to a direct request from Fedorov in February 2022, and the two had maintained a congenial relationship in the following years.
Senior Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Rob Lee, described the Russian near-total loss of Starlink as "truly game changing" in comments to the Kyiv Independent in May, saying that the loss was incredibly damaging, both for Russian command and control and for their ability to operate long-range strike drones.
More recently, Fedorov launched Ukraine's "logistics lockdown" campaign on May 27, a highly effective operation targeting Russian logistics vehicles with loitering munitions and medium-range drones.
Fedorov also launched a series of controversial military reforms in June, which received a mixed response from both serving members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, veterans' groups, and civil society.
His tenure was also marred by conflict with Ukraine's controversial Commander-in-Chief, General Oleksandr Syrskyi.
Yuriy Hudymenko, a prominent veteran and head of the Public Anti-Corruption Council at the Defense Ministry, told NV news outlet the two men approach problems from "fundamentally different perspectives" in an interview on June 17.
"This is a conflict between a young technocrat and a general from a largely post-Soviet military school," Hudymenko said.
Figures close to Fedorov, such as Sternenko, heavily criticized parts of the Ukrainian military under Syrskyi's direct command, particularly the notorious 425th Assault Regiment, more commonly known by their nickname, "Skala," for engaging in unsophisticated "meat wave" style assaults which routinely result in extremely high casualties.
