Ukraine's popular ex-defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections, in what is widely seen as the biggest challenge to Volodymyr Zelensky's presidency since Russia's full-scale invasion four and a half years ago.
"Democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia," said Fedorov, 35, in a video posted to YouTube on Tuesday, adding that Ukraine is fighting "precisely because we want to remain a free European state".
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we → call → Tuesday
Since the war broke out in 2022 Ukraine has been under martial law, meaning elections are suspended.
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elections → break → law
Fedorov, who did not mention Zelensky by name in the video, was unexpectedly fired from his role as defence minister last month, just six months after his appointment.
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who → mention → appointment
Zelensky has not directly responded to the video from Fedorov, whose dismissal sparked protests across the country.
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dismissal → respond → country
But in his own video message late on Wednesday, the Ukrainian president mentioned the tasks the newly-confirmed Defence Minister Yevhenii Khmara faced, including defending against deadly Russian aerial attacks and expanding Ukraine's "deep-strike capabilities" inside Russia.
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Khmara → mention → Russia
Meanwhile, a source in the presidential office told the BBC it was "highly bizarre to plan elections amidst missiles and drones.
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it → tell → missiles
This demonstrates a complete lack of realism".
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This → demonstrate → realism
A number of Ukrainian analysts have also questioned whether it would be possible to properly organise the voting for millions of Ukrainians who have fled the country and also hundreds of thousands of soldiers on the front line.
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who → question → line
Zelensky - whose five-year presidential term ended in May 2024 - has been under pressure from both Washington and Moscow to hold new elections.
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term → end → elections
When US President Donald Trump suggested last year that Kyiv was "using war" to avoid a vote, Zelensky said Ukraine was "ready for elections" within 60-90 days if its allies helped guarantee security for them.
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allies → suggest → them
Holding a fair and safe vote would present considerable challenges for a country under repeated Russian bombardment and many Ukrainians saw Trump's remarks as reflecting Vladimir Putin's narrative that Zelensky is not a legitimate leader.
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Zelensky → hold → narrative
In the latest Russian attacks on Wednesday, four people were killed when a drone hit a minibus in the southern city of Kherson.
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drone → kill → Kherson
Buses and minibuses in Kherson have been repeatedly targeted in recent months, killing drivers and passengers alike.
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Buses → target → drivers
In the central city of Zhytomyr, two police officers were killed and another 20 people injured in a Russian drone strike on the regional police headquarters, a local official said.
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official → kill → headquarters
In a separate development, Ukraine's two anti-corruption agencies said they were conducting a special operation targeting current and former MPs as well as an unnamed official in the presidential office.
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they → say → office
Hours later, Zelensky's office said its deputy head Iryna Mudra had been dismissed, amid local media reports of a raid on her premises.
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head → say → premises
There was no immediate comment from Mudra, although MP Vadym Stolar, whose home was searched as part of the operation, said he was co-operating with anti-corruption officials.
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he → be → officials
In his video, Fedorov complained that corruption was depriving the military of weapons and equipment and making it harder for Kyiv to win the war.
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Kyiv → complain → war
He spoke of Ukraine facing a "systemic crisis of governance" and being "scared of change".
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Ukraine → speak → change
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".
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we → gather → dialogue
Fedorov is a charismatic politician, and during his tenure as defence minister, he was credited with energising the ministry, heading a drive against corruption, challenging outdated military structures and transforming the battlefield with new technology.
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he → credit → technology
His dismissal in mid-July is believed to have resulted from tensions between him and army commander-in-chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi.
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dismissal → believe → chief
Within days Syrskyi was also replaced, as mounting protests calling for Fedorov's reinstatement piled pressure on the Ukrainian president.
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protests → replace → president
The ousted minister was offered other posts in the government, including deputy prime minister for military innovation, but he made clear he would only return as defence minister.
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he → oust → minister
Fedorov spoke in the video of a sense of injustice, warning it was "particularly dangerous when society develops the feeling that the main criterion for an appointment is not professionalism, results, or the ability to transform the country, but personal loyalty to the system".
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criterion → speak → system
The protests have continued weekly, with younger Ukrainians especially disappointed to see the established armed forces chief favoured over the fresh-faced digital innovator.
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chief → continue → innovator
He gave no indication of his own political plans in the YouTube video, instead focusing on the need for a "legal, safe, and realistic mechanism that will allow Ukraine to restore a full democratic process even amidst a prolonged war".
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Ukraine → give → war
In the space of a month, he has gone from saying he would only return to government in his old job, to calling for widespread reform and political change.
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he → go → reform
He has not explicitly stated his intention to run against Zelensky but he has laid down the most serious challenge yet, calling for "a state where institutions are stronger than names".
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institutions → state → names
That might be a reference to Zelensky's own personal profile, but after such a stark intervention, it is Fedorov's name that is now doing the rounds.
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that → do → rounds
His call for elections has angered some Ukrainian commentators, including those who backed Fedorov's return as defence minister.
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who → anger → minister
One of Zelensky's detractors argued that even the government's fiercest opponents understood that holding elections during the war was impossible.
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holding → argue → war
Ivan, 24, who was among the protesters calling for Fedorov's reinstatement outside parliament, told the BBC that "elections at this time of war wouldn't be the best thing".
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elections → call → war
Oleksandr Merezhko, an MP loyal to Zelensky, said he had backed Fedorov's return to the defence ministry but found his idea for new elections as "very dangerous and unrealistic".
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he → say → elections
"It will weaken the country and our unity, our resilience.
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It → weaken → country
That's why I think that the idea to hold elections unfortunately plays into the hands of Putin."
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idea → think → Putin
Another pro-Fedorov protester in Kyiv, Maya, said elections were not a good idea when Ukraine was at war.
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Ukraine → say → war
Zelensky was for now "the best choice, the safest option for all of us, but after the war ends I hope there will be a new president", she said.
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she → end → us
Opposition MP Volodymyr Aryev disagreed, accusing Zelensky of being detached from reality and saying "we have reached a point where we must choose between elections and chaos".
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we → disagree → elections
A former minister of digital transformation, Fedorov set up a volunteer "IT Army of Ukraine" to launch cyber-attacks against Russians in the early days after Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Later, he led a successful fundraising campaign called the Army of Drones and brought in elements of "gamification" to the war, designing a system that awarded Ukrainian military units with credits for hitting Russian targets.
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that → set → targets
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
