Ukraine’s ousted defence minister calls for elections during war

Mykhailo Fedorov’s call is the first such demand by a major Ukrainian political figure since Russia’s full-scale invasion.Ukraine’s former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections in the biggest internal challenge President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has faced since Russia’s full-scale invasion began in 2022.In a bombshell address posted on YouTube on Tuesday, Fedorov said democracy in Ukraine “cannot be held hostage by Russia”.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Has Ukraine’s Zelenskyy created a rival by sacking his defence minister?list 2 of 3Top Russian economist ousted after warning of growing costs of Ukraine warlist 3 of 3Russia reports Ukrainian drone strike near Zaporizhzhia nuclear plantend of listHe said the country needs to find “a legal, safe and realistic mechanism” to restart its full democratic process “even in the conditions of a long war”.Ukrainian law currently bars elections during wartime, and no major political figure has publicly pushed back on that since the invasion began in 2022.The 35-year-old Fedorov was a longtime ally of Zelenskyy’s until his unexpected firing from the Defence Ministry in July, just six months after his appointment.The dismissal sparked protests across the country.During his brief tenure, Fedorov had built a reputation as a reformer willing to publicly challenge the military establishment, a profile that has since fuelled speculation over whether he could emerge as a genuine political rival to Zelenskyy.Ukrainians protest against the dismissal of Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 24, 2026 [Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA]His removal is widely believed to have followed tension with armed forces commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskii, who was himself replaced weeks later after sustained public pressure and weeks of demonstrations calling for Fedorov’s reinstatement.Fedorov used the video to argue that Ukraine is facing a “systemic crisis of governance”, describing institutions that are “scared of change” and pointing to corruption as a factor undermining the country’s war effort, though he did not mention Zelenskyy by name.