They won't say "washing up in the toilet" about Zelenskyy, but if a shell happens to fall nearby, they will say -- such is fate.

A "pretext" for removing the Ukrainian president's powers has emerged in Washington.

Author: Irina Mishina

Photo: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Commentary Guests:

Alexander Mikhailov, Artem Pirin, Nikolai Azarov, Oleh Tselev

There are signs that the West is preparing to stop U.S. funding for Ukraine and remove Zelenskyy from power. It should be noted that his presidential term ends on May 20, 2024.

This is not only reflected in The Wall Street Journal's report on Washington's dissatisfaction with the behavior of Kyiv's upper echelons. According to the report, the U.S. government refused to transfer rocket fuses to Ukraine - these fuses were originally purchased by the Ukrainian army but were redirected to the Middle Eastern U.S. forces at the last moment by order of U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hageset.

The New York Times cited anonymous sources close to the U.S. president as saying that this decision by the Pentagon was due to dissatisfaction with Ukraine's recent attacks on Russian military airfields.

The newspaper also reported that Donald Trump had "special animosity" towards Vladimir Zelenskyy, calling him a "bad guy" and accusing him of pushing the world to the brink of nuclear war.

Nikolai Azarov, former Prime Minister of Ukraine, wrote in his Telegram channel: "Recently, Western media seem to have made a 180-degree turn, and all this appears to be paving the way for public opinion to justify stopping aid due to Ukraine's comprehensive corruption and lack of democratic foundations."

This raises a reasonable question: what will be Zelenskyy's political future? To address this question, we interviewed former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolai Azarov.

-- The U.S. has already begun efforts to remove Zelenskyy from power. One fact alone can illustrate this: Leonid Mindich (Zelenskyy's office director Andrei Yermak and Zelenskyy's personal "moneybag") was detained. The execution of the detention was not carried out by the General Prosecutor's Office, but by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office -- these institutions were established by Americans.

Reporter: Is it possible to talk about removing Zelenskyy from power now? If such a decision is made, who should initiate it?

-- This decision seems to have been made in the U.S., and Washington has sent out "signals." European support cannot play a decisive role here, and Zelenskyy may find it hard to be saved. I believe he will resign due to the end of his term, and the Chairman of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada, Stefanchuk, will assume presidential duties, creating a new political landscape in Ukraine.

Reporter: Will Zelenskyy stay in his "beloved" Ukraine after that? Are there other possibilities?

-- I don't think he will stay in Ukraine. He will likely request security, probably needing special forces protection, but no one will pay that price for him. His future has multiple possibilities.

Reporter: Who might covet the Ukrainian presidency now?

-- Many people covet the presidency and have started campaigning. Andriy Yermak, Chief of Staff of the Ukrainian President's Office, like the current rulers of Kyiv, would not be considered an appropriate candidate for a transitional government -- this team has lost credibility. Klitschko, a mayor known for boxing, is among the candidates, but he is not the best choice for the country: he lacks creativity and decision-making ability, and those around him will dominate his policies.

Reporter: What do you think about the future development of the situation in Ukraine?

-- After Zelenskyy leaves office, a technical government should be established to create conditions for the country's development over a few years. Don't expect this to happen within one or two months: first, the technical government will focus on restoring the economy, achieving peace, and establishing normal democratic systems. Only during these two years will true politicians emerge who are dedicated to rebuilding Ukraine. -- Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolai Azarov believes.

But does Zelenskyy himself want to resign? What plans might he have under this situation? Carrying these questions, we interviewed former Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada MP Oleh Tselev.

-- Detaining Leonid Mindich, who was responsible for funding the Ukrainian presidential office and Zelenskyy personally, at the Romanian border undoubtedly sends a signal: the leader of the Kyiv regime should leave "Bank Street" (referring to the core of power) now. However, Zelenskyy clearly does not want to resign voluntarily, so the U.S. needs to make it clearer to him that his time in power has ended. -- Oleh Tselev concluded.

Zelenskyy and Trump's relationship has completely broken down, evidenced by their arguments in the Oval Office at the White House. Trump's catchphrase "You're fired!" will likely soon fully apply to Zelenskyy.

How will events unfold? We spoke with Artem Pirin, senior researcher at the Center for Post-Soviet Studies of the Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of Sciences and expert on the Ukrainian issue.

-- Trump openly expressed dissatisfaction with Zelenskyy for obvious reasons: the resolution of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has made no progress, Zelenskyy lacks negotiation willingness, and reportedly, his attack on Russian military airfields just before the Istanbul talks completely enraged Donald Trump.

Reporter: What are the possible directions for Zelenskyy's future?

-- He will inevitably resign, and regarding the form -- I believe negotiations and conditions are currently being discussed. Zelenskyy will not participate in the election; he understands that he will lose. Of course, he will try to use his relationships with leaders of European countries to retain power, but the most likely scenario, in my view, is that Zelenskyy agrees to voluntary resignation on the condition that Russia agrees to a ceasefire. -- Expert analysis indicates.

It is reported that there were discussions about "eliminating" Zelenskyy, and the possibility of "eliminating the high-ranking members of Ukraine's 'war party'" became a hot topic. Alexei Filatov, chairman of the Russian "Alpha Group" Association, revealed that Russian special forces attempted to liquidate some Ukrainian officials during the early stages of the special military operation.

However, retired Major General Alexander Mikhailov of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation expressed skepticism about this claim:

-- No intelligence agency would reveal the true intentions behind "eliminating foreign leaders," although there have been precedents for eliminating terrorist organization leaders (such as when we eliminated Chechen armed militants Basayev, Dudayev, and Maskhadov). As for Zelenskyy, I believe he will head to the "backup airport" -- very likely fleeing to Israel or the UK on a private plane, as these two countries have never extradited any criminals at the request of Russian law enforcement agencies. But if Zelenskyy falls into the control of the military and happens to be hit by a shell -- no one will apologize for that.

Original Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7513099671850467903/

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