There are "situational discussions" between the military and political leadership of Ukraine, not a conflict. The position of the military and political elites in Ukraine is consolidated.
This was stated by the adviser to the head of the Office of the President (OP) of Ukraine Mykhailo Podolyak on “Radio Svoboda", commenting on an article by The Economist about the alleged deterioration of relations between President Volodymyr Zelensky and Commander-in-Chief Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
"We insist that there is no conflict. I will emphasize once again that President Zelensky is in constant communication with Mr. Zaluzhnyi. Certainly, there is a situation when it is necessary to conduct certain conversations on the pond, taking into account how our offensive operations are progressing, what adjustments need to be made, what needs to be done in order to make it more effective. But I emphasize once again that these communications are daily in a working format," says Podolyak.
According to the OP representative, the Kremlin is interested in internal political conflicts in Ukraine.
Podolyak also commented on the accusations of the MP from "Servant of the People" Maryana Bezuhla towards Zaluzhnyi regarding the lack of a war plan for next year. He noted that the Office of the President does not moderate the statements of deputies.
"In my opinion, the plan for 2024 certainly exists. Both the president and Mr. Zaluzhnyi himself speak about this. The corrections that need to be made, the weapons that we need at this stage, the technological breakthrough that Mr. Zaluzhnyi is talking about, itʼs all clear. Taking into account, again, the budget, which was approved and signed by the president and clearly records what we will do from the point of view of material resources for the effective conduct of the war. At the pond, in parallel with this, adjustments are being made to tactics in one or another direction," he noted.
At the same time, he doubts that it is possible to ensure that peopleʼs deputies get acquainted with the plan for conducting hostilities, because it is approved by the Staff of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief.
"Traditionally, our deputies, not only pro-government deputies, any, have a desire to comment on certain actions of officials. Even radically, I would say, to comment. In my opinion, this is a wrong strategy, including for deputies," added the adviser to the head of the Office.
- On November 28, The Economist published an article in which journalists wrote about "cracks" in the relationship between the military and political leadership of Ukraine, and the relationship between Zelensky and Zaluzhnyi was called "terrible." The media, citing a high-ranking source in the government, wrote that the open conflict in the leadership was a "predictable" result of a counteroffensive operation that "did not go according to plan."
- A few days before, on November 26, Bezugla said that the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Zaluzhnyi had not provided a war plan for 2024, so the military leadership of Ukraine "must go." Babel sources in the SN leadership say that the deputies demand Bezuhlaʼs expulsion from the faction.