Marc Santora and Maria Varenikova
President Volodymyr Zelensky’s overhaul of his government did not appear to signal fundamental shifts in domestic or foreign policy, analysts said Wednesday. But it comes at a dynamic moment in the war, with Russia stepping up airstrikes and inching forward in eastern Ukraine, and weeks before Mr. Zelensky is expected to travel to the United States, where the outcome of November’s elections could affect Washington’s support for his military.
While a reshuffle had long been in the works making the move now was a recognition by Mr. Zelensky that “Ukraine has to prepare for a new phase of the war and new phase of diplomacy and he would like to see some new managers for these processes,” said Mykhailo Minakov, a senior adviser on Ukraine for the Wilson Center’s Kennan Institute.
He and other analysts noted that there had been unusual stability to this point in the president’s wartime team. The reshuffle, Mr. Minakov said, had been in the works for months, first discussed at the beginning of the year and again in the spring.
On Wednesday, the Ukrainian leader said the changes would bring “a new energy” to his administration. “These steps are related to strengthening our state in various areas,” he said during a meeting in Kyiv with Prime Minister Simon Harris of Ireland. He declined to comment on where some of the ministers who tendered their resignations might end up in the reshuffle.
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