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Fedorov challenges Zelenskyy
Ukraine’s ousted defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov called for wartime elections in a video address, arguing that Ukraine faces a "crisis of governance" and that "democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia."
“democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia”
Fedorov, 35, made the call after his unexpected firing from the Defence Ministry in July, just six months after he was appointed, and the BBC said Zelensky is yet to respond to the video.
Under Ukrainian law, elections during wartime are prohibited, and the BBC described the idea as "highly bizarre to plan elections amidst missiles and drones."
The political challenge comes as Zelenskyy confirmed he had asked parliament to confirm acting defence minister Yevhenii Khmara in office on Wednesday, hours after Fedorov’s remarks.
ABC News & Headlines said Fedorov’s demand is the first call for a leadership challenge to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.
Protests and anti-corruption
Fedorov’s dismissal sparked protests across Ukraine, and the BBC reported about 100 protesters gathered outside the Ukrainian parliament on Wednesday morning, chanting "bring back Fedorov as minister of defence" and "we are fed up, we want dialogue."
In the same BBC report, a source in the presidential office said the election plan was "highly bizarre to plan elections amidst missiles and drones," while the BBC also said Fedorov complained corruption was depriving the military of weapons and equipment.
DW said Zelenskyy dismissed deputy head of the presidential office Iryna Mudra amid a corruption probe, with the decree published on the official website of the president of Ukraine on Wednesday.
DW reported that Ukraine’s anti-corruption agencies launched an investigation into a group suspected of money laundering, and it said NABU was "conducting a special operation to expose a criminal organization" led by a current and a former Ukrainian lawmaker.
DW also said Ukraine and Russia exchanged 103 prisoners of war each, citing the Russian Interfax news agency and the Ministry of Defense in Moscow, as political and legal pressure intensified around Zelenskyy’s wartime rule.
War pressures governance
The election debate is unfolding alongside continued attacks, with DW reporting that at least four civilians were killed and another four injured in a Russian drone attack on a bus in Kherson on Wednesday morning.
“Russian military forces attacked a bus travelling down a street in Kherson with a drone”
DW quoted the local prosecutor’s office saying, "Russian military forces attacked a bus travelling down a street in Kherson with a drone," and it added that four civilian passengers were killed, while Oleksandr Prokudin posted images online.
In the political arena, Fedorov’s call for elections despite martial law highlights the legal hurdle that Ukrainian law currently prohibits holding elections during wartime, even as he urged a "legal, safe and realistic mechanism" to restore Ukraine’s democratic process.
ABC News & Headlines said Fedorov told viewers Ukraine faces a "crisis of governance" and that "The old system lives by its own rules too often," while it noted his remarks came as new Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara was appointed.
DW also reported that Moscow claimed to have shot down 453 Ukrainian drones over Russia overnight, underscoring the security environment in which Zelenskyy’s administration is trying to manage both war and governance disputes.