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Zelensky effectively launches Fedorov's presidential campaign himself - Rada member

TASS (Russian state media) · back to the audit

MOSCOW, July 22. /TASS/. By removing Mikhail Fedorov as Ukraine's defense minister, Vladimir Zelensky has effectively launched Fedorov's presidential campaign with his own hands, Maryana Bezuglaya, a member of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament, said.

"Paradoxically, amid this mix of partnership and confrontation, [Zelensky] has already launched Mikhail [Fedorov's] own presidential campaign, which could prove highly successful," she wrote on her Telegram channel, commenting on Fedorov's dismissal and the protests that followed.

Meanwhile, the latest survey by the Rating sociological group showed that Fedorov has overtaken Zelensky in public trust among Ukrainians. Former Ukrainian armed forces Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhny ranked first with 70%, followed by Fedorov with 65%. Zelensky's chief of staff, Kirill Budanov, whom Russia has designated a terrorist and extremist, came third, while Zelensky ranked fourth. Trust in Fedorov rose from 35% to 65% in just a week.

Fedorov was removed as Ukrainian defense minister on July 14, partly because of a conflict with Ukrainian armed forces Commander-in-Chief Alexander Syrsky. Protests against his dismissal began in Ukrainian cities on July 16.