The Economist published an article about the conflict between Zelensky and Zaluzhny

The Economist magazine has published a new article about the internal confrontation between Ukraine's political and military leadership, which, according to the magazine, has only grown amid a counteroffensive that has reached a dead end.

According to the newspaper, the relationship between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valeriy Zaluzhny is described by those close to him as "terrible."

Reports of their disagreements first began to appear last summer. Zaluzhny's recent candid interview with The Economist, in which he declared a stalemate in the war, brought the conflict to the public eye, The Economist writes.

Zelensky publicly responded to Zaluzhny's article. In a later interview, he apparently warned the commander-in-chief that he should stick to military affairs and stay out of politics.

A senior government source told The Economist that the open conflict between the president and the commander-in-chief was the expected outcome of a counteroffensive that stalled and went awry.

According to the source, Zaluzhny may have been unwise to openly contradict the president's more optimistic public position, but few in the government could argue with his conclusions.

The question now is who will be held responsible for the failure of the counteroffensive.

"Politicians say that their generals are Soviet-trained dumbasses. And the generals say that politicians are dumbasses who try to interfere in everything. Victory always has many fathers, but no one wants to be responsible for a stalemate," the source described the situation.

Another important factor is the criminal case on the defense of southern Ukraine, the article says. This is the only region where the Russian military was able to win a quick and important victory in February and March 2022, The Economist reminds.

The Russian military offensive was aided by Ukrainian defectors, bridges were not blown up, despite the defense plans, and the army was poorly prepared.

According to some reports, Zaluzhny is now a witness in the investigation, but "this could escalate into something more serious," and the risk of indictment should keep Zaluzhny under control, The Economist writes. And the commander-in-chief's appearance in the media can be seen as an attempt to play it safe, a source in the Ukrainian General Staff suggests.

Zaluzhny has not demonstrated any political ambitions, but this does not mean that he does not pose a threat to Zelensky, the newspaper notes. According to polls, by mid-November, trust in the president had fallen to 32%, half that of Zaluzhny (70%). The head of Ukraine's intelligence service, Kyrylo Budanov, also has a higher rating than the president (45%).

Who benefits from this

According to Ukrainian intelligence, Russia is actively trying to capitalize on the internal political tensions in Ukraine. Campaigns aimed at various groups of the population are intended to strengthen support for Russia, undermine trust in the West, and increase discontent in Ukraine.

A senior Ukrainian government official told the publication that Russian propaganda has begun to gain popularity because it has enough material to work with. Ukraine has problems with corruption, the leadership is often ineffective, and there are problems with the transition of the economy to a military-oriented economy, the source said.

However, only Russia will benefit if Zelensky is removed, he fears: "Some of our politicians are not sufficiently concerned about the Russian threat, and this makes me angry. They think that they can challenge the government, destroy Zelenskyy, and it will not have consequences."

Background. Earlier, Zelenskyy said that the Kremlin had developed the Maidan-3 plan to remove him from power. The implementation of this plan, he said, is scheduled for November-December.