Rada ready to convene to appoint defence minister. "Will from above" needed – "Servant of People" Merezhko
The Verkhovna Rada may convene for an extraordinary sitting if necessary, including to appoint a defence minister.
Oleksandr Merezhko, an MP from the Servant of the People faction and chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation, said this in a comment to Censor.NET.
What is known?
"The issue is not whether the Verkhovna Rada will be able to convene. The Rada will undoubtedly convene if there is such a need and ‘will from above.’ It seems to me that the political question remains or, more precisely, whom exactly the president will nominate for defence minister. From what I am currently seeing in the news, the issue has not yet been finally resolved. Perhaps it was decided to pause in view of the president’s visit to the United States. But the fundamental question remains the same: whether a decision will be made to nominate Fedorov for defence minister. It is purely political. Everything else depends on how it is resolved, including when the Rada will convene to vote on a new defence minister. We are working in committees. For example, our committee is currently preparing two important meetings," he said.
According to the MP, if the president listens to the protesters and submits Fedorov’s candidacy for defence minister to parliament, he will support the decision:
"I cannot advise the protesters, although I respect the fact that there are people who care and respond to what they consider wrong or unjust. Today, there is a clear demand that Fedorov be nominated for defence minister. Fedorov was offered some alternatives, but he does not agree to them. Perhaps this is because he needs this particular position to implement his reforms and plans, rather than some other posts with powers that are not always clear. I respect such a principled position. If the president listens to the people and nominates Fedorov, I will gladly vote in favour. At the same time, I understand the president. He must consider not only the protesters’ views but also those of the military and perhaps even our partners. This is not an easy decision."
Merezhko believes that Fedorov should have been kept as head of the Ministry of Defence.
"He has delivered concrete positive results and enjoys the trust of both our partners and the president himself. He served as minister for only six months. That was not enough time for him to implement his reforms and projects. Fedorov has always been an effective and loyal member of the president’s team. From the very beginning. I believe team members should be supported. In general, if we follow the logic that Fedorov was not nominated for defence minister because of his conflict with Syrskyi, that conflict has now been resolved: Syrskyi is no longer Commander-in-Chief, and there are now no grounds for Fedorov not to become minister again. Zelenskyy once presented his team on Pliusy. Both Fedorov and I were there. As a team member, Fedorov should be given a chance and more time," the parliamentarian stressed. "Fedorov should also be appointed minister because he reportedly has a good relationship with Drapatyi. In other words, they could work productively in tandem," he added.
He admitted that he was not yet ready to say whether he would support Yevhenii Khmara’s candidacy if the president submitted it to the Verkhovna Rada:
"I will think about it. I have a positive view of Khmara. But if voting for him is perceived as voting against Fedorov, that raises a difficult question. I would like to see Fedorov in this position, although I also respect Khmara. Moreover, the person holding this position should, after all, be a civilian."
