Western media on Reznikov’s resignation and what to expect from his successor Umerov

Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov has officially submitted a letter of resignation.

Read also: Mini cabinet shuffle likely as Zelenksyy looks to replace embattled Defense and Culture ministers

The Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, is expected to consider the appointment of a new minister as early as this week, after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy nominated Rustem Umerov, the current head of the State Property Fund, for the post.

Western media call this ministerial reshuffle the most significant in the Ukrainian government since Russia’s full-scale invasion, sum up Reznikov’s achievements, who has served as the defense minister since November 2021, and explain the reasons for his resignation.

NV collected the most interesting fragments from media publications regarding the expected appointment of the new minister.

Reuters calls the likely replacement of the defense minister the “biggest shake-up of Ukraine’s defense establishment” since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Summarizing Reznikov’s work in one paragraph, the agency reiterates that he “has helped secure billions of dollars of Western military aid” to help the war effort, but has been dogged by graft allegations surrounding his ministry that he has described as smears.

The decision to replace Reznikov with Umerov comes “amid a crackdown on corruption in Ukraine that Zelenskyy has been eager to emphasize,” Reuters wrote.

Read also: Ukraine’s parliament dismissed Pishchanska as AMCU head, Reznikov and Umerov dismissed as well

“Kyiv has applied to join the European Union and the public has become highly sensitive to corruption as the war rages with no end in sight,” the report reads.

As for a 41-year-old former lawmaker and Crimean Tatar, Rustem Umerov, Reuters noted that he “has played a role in sensitive wartime negotiations on, for instance, the Black Sea grain deal.”

“He has been praised in Ukraine for his track record at the State Property Fund, which oversees the privatization of state assets and had been embroiled in corruption scandals before he took charge,” the agency said.

In justice to Reznikov, Reuters stressed that during the war, his defense ministry lobbied the West to overcome taboos on supplying heavy military equipment to Ukraine, including German-made main battle tanks and HIMARS rocket artillery. Kyiv now looks poised to receive U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets soon.

“An English-speaker, Reznikov is seen as having built up a strong rapport with allied defense ministers and military officials,” the report says.

Read also: Reznikov replaced by Umerov, Kolomoisky charged, Russia pressuring families through schools

“His apparent exit appears to bring an end to months of domestic media pressure that began in January when Reznikov’s ministry was accused of buying food at inflated prices. Though he was not personally involved in the food contract, some Ukrainian commentators said he should take political responsibility for what happened.”

Although Reznikov has had numerous interactions with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, a Pentagon spokesperson declined comment to Reuters on his resignation, saying that it was an internal matter for the Ukrainian government.

New York Times also emphasized that Reznikov “has not been personally implicated in the widening investigations into mishandling of military contracts,” although his fate has recently been the subject of increasing speculation in Ukraine.

Like many other media, NYT also calls this move “the biggest shake-up” in the leadership of Ukraine’s war effort since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.

“The decision to replace Mr. Reznikov atop the Defense Ministry comes as Ukraine is in the midst of a major counter-offensive that has made grinding progress in recent weeks, slowly gaining territory in the south and the east,” the newspaper said.

An official in the President’s Office, who was not authorized to speak publicly about the dismissal, told NYT that the shake-up arose from an understanding that Ukraine will need new leadership as the war drags on, from Reznikov’s own requests to step down and from growing criticism from Ukrainian civil society and media over several procurement scandals.

Since the start of the war, Reznikov has become a public face for Ukraine on the world stage, NYT wrote. He was among a handful of Zelenskyy’s top security officials who remained in Kyiv, as it was partially surrounded by Russian forces in the opening weeks of the war.

Read also: Zelenskyy visits troops in Zaporizhzhya Oblast

In addition, Reznikov had garnered praise for negotiating the transfer of vast quantities of Western weaponry under the Ramstein talks with allies, named for the U.S. Air Force base in Germany where they began last year. He oversaw the expansion of the army and its transition from an arsenal of Soviet-era armaments to Western systems even as his country was under attack.

At the same time, the Defense Ministry has been buffeted this year by a string of allegations of mishandling military procurement and corruption as its budget ballooned during the war, NYT pointed out.

Last week, the White House national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, met with three high-ranking Ukrainian officials to discuss efforts to stamp out wartime corruption, as some critics of the war in the United States have used graft as an argument for limiting military aid to Kyiv.

But it appears that the change was not anticipated (in Washington). Reznikov was scheduled to visit the Pentagon this later this week to meet with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The two men had regular contact and spoke “relatively frequently,” according to a U.S. official who spoke on background as the news was breaking on Sept. 3. It is believed that they last met in person at the NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, in July.

Commenting on Umerov’s candidacy, NYT states that he is a former investment banker, who has been tapped to replace Reznikov even though he previously served in parliament as an MP for Holos, a party in opposition to Zelenskyy’s government. He is a Crimean Tatar, a member of the ethnic group persecuted under Russia’s occupation of the Crimean Peninsula.

Read also: Reznikov replaced by Umerov, Kolomoisky charged, Russia pressuring families through schools

Despite the decision to replace Reznikov, Ukraine has experienced far more stability over the course of the invasion than Russia, which has undergone several leadership changes and endured criticism of its battlefield tactics, culminating in the brief mutiny by the mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, who marched members of his Wagner private military company towards Moscow in June, and then was declared dead in a fiery plane crash last month, NYT wrote.

In October 2022, Russia appointed Gen. Sergei Surovikin to command its forces in Ukraine. He lasted just three months before he was replaced by Gen. Valery Gerasimov, Russia’s highest-ranking military officer. U.S. officials have said Surovikin had advance knowledge of Prigozhin’s mutiny plans, whose death some Western officials have suggested was ordered by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.

CNN wrote that while Reznikov has not been implicated in any of the corruption scandals, they have still been seen to damage him by association.

In this regard, CNN reiterates Zelenskyy’s statement that rooting out corruption across Ukraine’s government is vital to Kyiv’s chances of attaining long-awaited membership in NATO and the European Union.

As an example, one of Ukraine’s most powerful oligarchs and a key Zelenskyy supporter, Ihor Kolomoisky, was arrested on Sept. 2 as part of a fraud investigation.

The Washington Post drew attention to Zelenskyy’s words that the ministry needs “new approaches.” Therefore, the reshuffle comes “amid a wider anti-corruption campaign, with Zelenskyy’s government seeking to eliminate graft and convince foreign donors that their money is not lost to malfeasance.”

Reznikov was not personally accused of corruption, “but his ministry has faced graft allegations including purchasing food for the country’s armed forces at inflated prices,” WaPo wrote.

Politico emphasized that the departure of Reznikov as defense chief “marks the highest-level turnover in Zelenskyy’s inner circle” since the start of the war in February 2022, even as Kyiv’s counter-offensive appears to be gaining ground with its troops pushing into Russian-held territory.

U.S. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said on Sept. 1 that Washington has seen signs that the counteroffensive is picking up pace. According to Kirby, officials have “noted over the last 72 hours or so some notable progress by Ukrainian armed forces,” particularly along the southern front in Zaporizhzhya Oblast.

Read also: President’s Office cites three reasons for Ukraine's ‘slow’ counter-offensive

Politico calls Reznikov “one of the most prominent faces of Ukraine’s military leadership since Russia’s invasion.”

“He has traveled throughout Europe to attend NATO meetings and to make his pitch to partners for more weapons, and to deliver aid pledges more quickly,” the report says.

Read also: NATO to host inaugural Baltic Sea exercises to send ‘clear signal’ to Putin’s Russia

“Having a seat at the table for NATO discussions over the past 18 months has brought him in close touch with defense chiefs across the NATO alliance, particularly with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin. The two regularly speak by phone and huddle in person at monthly Ukraine Defense Contact Group meetings where a coalition of 50 countries decide what new weaponry to send to Kyiv.”

However, Reznikov’s reputation “took several hits” earlier this year over a handful of wartime scandals in the Defense Ministry in which officials were accused of profiteering. While Reznikov was never implicated, the revelations were a black eye not only for his ministry, but for him personally, Politico wrote.

Read also: Ukraine’s defense minister replaced amid wartime corruption crackdown

The next meeting of the Ramstein group will likely come in mid-September, and depending on how quickly the Ukrainian parliament moves, it could be the first time Umerov takes part in the high-level meeting with defense ministers.

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