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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
The former minister believes Kyiv needs autonomous drones, cheap interceptors, and its own ballistic missiles.
Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who a week ago urged holding elections in Ukraine, said the country is gradually losing ground in the war with Russia. In his estimation, there are only a few months to make decisions that could change the situation. He named the main problems as the lack of a unified strategy, slow adoption of innovations, and the inefficiency of the state system. This was reported by Reuters.
In an interview with Reuters, the former minister said the country had drawn near a turning point that will determine the future development of events. At the same time, he stressed that Ukraine still has every chance to win. Separately, Fedorov pointed to corruption, networks of political patronage, and insufficient independence of state institutions.
In the president's office, in response, they stated that during his time at the Defense Ministry Fedorov positively assessed the course of the war. They noted that only his personal status has changed since then. Fedorov himself insists that the situation now requires an urgent change of approaches.
Fedorov was dismissed six months after his appointment as defense minister. During his tenure he began reforms in procurement and mobilization. This led to conflicts with part of the military leadership and political opponents.
Last week, Fedorov also became the first major Ukrainian politician to call for elections during the war. He explained this by a systemic crisis of state governance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sharply criticized such a proposal.
In a Monday interview, Fedorov separately emphasized the development of autonomous drones with artificial intelligence systems. He also urged the creation of cheap interceptor missiles to counter Russian air attacks. Another important direction he named is Ukraine's own ballistic missile program. Ukrainian manufacturers are already working on such technologies. However, according to Fedorov, the country lacks a unified strategy that would allow them to be used as effectively as possible after deployment.
His vision involves creating a front saturated with electronic sensors to detect the enemy. Ground and air operations would rely on unmanned systems. This would allow reducing the number of people directly on the front line.
Fedorov stated that technologies capable of completely stopping Russian troops already exist. In his view, the problem lies in the lack of a vision that would allow them to be applied systematically. He also sharply criticized the state apparatus, assessing its effectiveness at only 5%.
Separately, the former minister spoke about Ukraine's drone strikes campaign against Russia's fuel and military logistics in the occupied south of Ukraine. He said he was one of the main initiators of this operation. It created problems for Russian troops on the front. Fedorov believes that to continue this campaign there remains a window of a few months. The goal is to further isolate the temporarily occupied Crimea. He expects that over time Russia will find effective ways to counter Ukraine's current tactics.
The success of long-range strikes this year also affected assessments of Ukraine's prospects in the war. Fedorov previously said that one of the factors behind the effectiveness was shifting some costs planned for the second half of 2026 year to an earlier period.
Zelensky, over the weekend, stated that such early funding left the Defense Ministry's budget with a deficit of 27 billion dollars. For Ukraine, which is largely dependent on partner aid, there is no solution yet. Fedorov replied that he does not know where the president got the amount of 27 billion dollars. He said that the Defense Ministry under his leadership prepared a spending plan that accounted for savings on new procurement tenders and international aid.
The former minister also said that after coming to the Defense Ministry he discovered heads of certain departments who were allegedly appointed with the help of defense companies. He said they lobbied for the interests of these manufacturers.
Fedorov claims that under his plan the budget deficit by the end of the year was to be about 5 billion dollars. He also said that the team understood where these funds could be obtained. In his view, after his dismissal the plan could have changed or new projects that require significantly higher funding could have emerged.
Zelensky also suggested that Fedorov might have been pushed toward calls for elections by external forces. The former minister categorically denied this. Fedorov acknowledged that holding elections during the war creates extensive logistical difficulties. At the same time, he believes Ukraine is capable of finding innovative solutions for them.
In the near future, Fedorov plans to combine political activity with work on military technologies. Specifically, he intends to work on projects in the field of defense innovations. He also plans to create an investment fund and attract capital for it during a future trip to the United States.
As a reminder, after Mikhail Fedorov's dismissal from the post of defense minister, a parliamentary inquiry commission raised questions. The commission summoned him to a meeting scheduled for 31 August. Deputies want to determine possible violations of anti-corruption legislation in the use of public funds, state property, and other resources. Separately, Fedorov is to provide explanations regarding information related to the NABU operation “Midas.”
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