In an interview with the Italian newspaper “La Repubblica”, excerpts of which were quoted by the “Politico” website on Saturday, G. Crosetto praised M. Fedorov, who is credited with modernizing the Ukrainian army.
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“Fedorov embodies innovation,” said the Italian minister.
G. Crosetto stated that M. Fedorov was moved by the offer and accepted it as “a sign of respect and friendship,” but did not say whether M. Fedorov accepted the offer.
Last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s decision to dismiss M. Fedorov plunged Kyiv into its deepest political crisis since 2022, when Russia invaded the country.
Thousands of young people across the country protested against this decision.
35-year-old M. Fedorov was appointed Minister of Defense in January, tasked with modernizing and digitizing the Ukrainian army.
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He was dismissed after months of behind-the-scenes disputes with the military leadership, which, he claimed, resisted his calls for changing the status quo.
After several days of protests, V. Zelenskyy earlier this week dismissed Oleksandr Syrskyi, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and appointed Mykhailo Drapata – an ally and like-minded reformer of M. Fedorov – in his place.
However, V. Zelenskyy has appointed a new interim Minister of Defense and refused to offer M. Fedorov his previous position, and on Thursday, the latter rejected the president’s proposals for new roles, stating that he would only agree to return to his previous post where he could fight corruption, “eradicate the culture of lies,” and “complete the military reform.”
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