After his dismissal, former Ukrainian defense minister Resnikov handed in his letter of resignation. His tenure was accompanied by allegations of corruption. The Crimean Tatar Umerow is to be his successor.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov has asked parliament to dismiss him. He announced this on X, formerly Twitter. The Rada – the Supreme Council in Ukraine’s unicameral system – still has to approve the personnel. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy yesterday decided to replace Reznikov with the head of Ukraine’s main privatization fund, Rustem Umerov.
Reznikov has held the post since November 2021. It was “an honor” for him to “serve the Ukrainian people and to work for the (Ukrainian army) during the past 22 months, the most difficult period in the modern history of Ukraine”.
“Following the decision of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, I submitted my resignation to the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine,” Reznikov wrote on Facebook. He was ready to give an account of the work done to Parliament.
“New Approaches and Other Formats”
Reznikov took office a few months before Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine began in February 2022. The 57-year-old lawyer has since become one of Ukraine’s best-known representatives, courting its Western allies for modern weapons.
After more than 550 days of Russian war of aggression against his country, the ministry needs “new approaches and other formats of interaction both with the military and with society in general,” Zelenskyy said in his evening video address. He expects the parliament in Kiev to approve his proposal to appoint the Crimean Tatar Umerov.
According to observers, Zelenskyi wants to use the change in personnel to take Resnikov, who has been accused of corruption in his ministry, out of the public eye before the president visits the United States in just under two weeks. He is then expected in New York for the general debate of the UN General Assembly. The European Union made progress in tackling corruption, a condition of Ukraine’s bid for EU membership.
Allegations about food, uniforms and recruitment
In January Reznikov retained his post, but his deputy was forced to resign after the ministry was accused of selling food contracts at grossly inflated prices. At that time, Resnikov had admitted a “failure” by the anti-corruption authorities.
At the end of August, several media reported that the Ministry of Defense in Kiev signed a contract with a Turkish company at the end of 2022 for the supply of winter uniforms, the price of which tripled after the contract was signed. Reznikov denied the reports, saying everything about the uniform purchase was done “in accordance with the Public Procurement Act.”
At the beginning of August, head of state Selenskyj dismissed all those responsible for the recruitment of soldiers in the region. Cases of corruption in recruitment had previously become known. According to this, conscripts could evade armed service by paying bribes.