KYIV: Ukraine’s defense minister will be preplaced by the chief of the military intelligence ahead of an expected Russian offensive and following corruption scandals, a senior lawmaker said on Sunday.
“Kyrylo Budanov will head the defense ministry, which is absolutely logical in wartime,” said senior lawmaker David Arakhamia, referring to the 37-year-old chief of the military intelligence.
Reznikov, 56, will be appointed minister for strategic industries, the lawmaker said without specifying a timeline for the planned re-shuffle.
“War dictates personnel policies,” added Arakhamia.
“Time and circumstances require reinforcement and regrouping. This is happening now and will continue to happen in the future,” he added.
“The enemy is preparing to advance. We are preparing to defend ourselves.”
One of the best-known faces of Ukraine’s war effort, Reznikov was appointed defense minister in November 2021 and has helped secure Western weapons to buttress Ukrainian forces.
But his ministry has been beset by corruption scandals.
Reznikov’s deputy was forced to resign in late January after the ministry was accused of signing food contracts at prices two to three times higher than current rates for basic foodstuffs.
Speaking to reporters earlier Sunday, Reznikov did not say if he planned to stay on at the ministry.
But he added that only President Volodymyr Zelensky, who last week stepped up efforts to clamp down on corruption, could decide his fate.
“The stress that I have endured this year is hard to measure precisely. I am not ashamed of anything,” Reznikov said. “My conscience is absolutely clear.”
Ukraine to replace defense minister after corruption scandals: MP
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Ukraine to replace defense minister after corruption scandals: MP
- "Time and circumstances require reinforcement and regrouping", Ukranian lawmaker says
Senegal ex-minister faces $2.7m embezzlement probe
- At least five of Sall’s ministers have since been referred to the west African country’s High Court of Justice
- The National Assembly voted on Friday to refer former communications and digital affairs minister Moussa Bocar Thiam to the court
DAKAR: Senegal’s parliament on Friday referred a former minister to a special court for allegedly embezzling millions in taxpayers’ cash, in the latest case targeting a member of ex-president Macky Sall’s government.
Since unseating Sall in March 2024, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko have repeatedly accused their predecessors of mismanaging the public purse, pledging to bring them to justice.
At least five of Sall’s ministers have since been referred to the west African country’s High Court of Justice, which is responsible for trying former members of government over crimes committed while in office.
The National Assembly, which is overwhelmingly dominated by Faye and Sonko’s ruling Pastef party, voted on Friday to refer former communications and digital affairs minister Moussa Bocar Thiam to the court over a contract for a digital technology park.
According to a parliamentary report, the contract’s execution showed “serious indications and presumptions of a nature to justify criminal proceedings against Minister Moussa Bocar Thiam for criminal conspiracy, embezzlement of public funds to the tune of 1,476,482,766 CFA francs ($2.7 million) and money laundering.”
The ex-minister replied on social media to denounce the process as “without legal basis,” adding that he would fight the matter in court.
After a hearing, the High Court of Justice’s investigating committee will decide whether to bring Thiam to trial. The tribunal’s rulings cannot be appealed or reviewed.
