Enyichukwu Enemanna
Ahead of Russia’s expected offensive, Ukraine has concluded plans to remove the defence Minister, Oleksii Reznikov and replace him with the 37-year-old Chief of its Military Spy Agency, Kyrylo Budanov, a senior legislator has said, in a high-profile cabinet reshuffle amidst corruption scandals.
Reznikov, 56, according to the official, would be transferred to another ministerial job and replaced by Budanov, who heads Ukraine’s GUR Military Intelligence Agency, David Arakhamia said on the Telegram on Sunday.
“War dictates personnel policies,” said Arakhamia, a close ally of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
The soon-to-be replaced Minister is alleged to have been involved in scandal arising from food contracts that envisaged paying vastly inflated prices.
Amid the public outcry, one of Reznikov’s deputy ministers has been fired, while two other senior officials have also since left their posts.
Arakhamia said that Ukraine’s “force” agencies, like the defence ministry should not be headed by politicians during wartime, but by people with a background in defence or security.
“Kyrylo Budanov will head the defence ministry, which is absolutely logical in wartime,” the legislator said.
“Time and circumstances require reinforcement and regrouping. This is happening now and will continue to happen in the future,” Arakhamia said. “The enemy is preparing to advance. We are preparing to defend ourselves,” he added, referring to Ukrainian fears that Russia is planning a vast new offensive this month.
As a major general, Budanov has headed the military intelligence since August 2020.
