President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Feb. 5 that he discussed "strengthening the state policy on veterans" with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, likely referring to the resignation of Veterans Affairs Minister Yuliia Laputina.
"With all due respect to the minister, this is a management issue only. Ukraine needs strength, fresh energy, and sufficient leadership in every sphere," Zelensky said in his evening video address.
"We must win this war. And do the maximum this year, even more than possible."
Laputina submitted her resignation to the Ukrainian parliament earlier the same day. According to Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk, the parliament plans to consider her resignation on Feb. 6.
The news came a day after Zelensky said he was planning a large-scale reset of Ukraine’s leadership amid rumors of the potential dismissal of Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
According to Zelensky, he discussed with Shmyhal "steps to overcome the existing problems" in the state policy on war veterans and "add confidence to our people."
"Steps to reset — and not only in this direction."
The Ministry for Veterans Affairs was created in 2018, four years after Russia first invaded the Donbas and illegally annexed Crimea, to implement state policy on the social protection of war veterans.
In August last year, former Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said that around a million Ukrainians had become combat veterans since the Russian invasion of Donbas in 2014.
Laputina has served as the ministry’s head since December 2020. Previously, she had years-long experience in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU).
Asami Terajima
