Zaluzhnyi Forming Team for Ukraine Presidential Run: Report

Serious shifts are maturing in the political life of Ukraine, at the center of which is the figure of Valerii Zaluzhnyi, the former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and current Ambassador of Ukraine to the United Kingdom. According to the prestigious French publication Intelligence Online, Zaluzhnyi has begun to actively form a team to prepare for a potential fight for the presidency of Ukraine. As part of this process, a number of high-ranking Ukrainian military officials have already received offers to join Zaluzhnyi's team.

According to the French publication, the military personnel were offered to be ready to enter the deputy corps of the Verkhovna Rada after a change of power occurs and Valerii Zaluzhnyi replaces Volodymyr Zelenskyy. It is not yet clear whether this process involves the creation of a new political party led by the former Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, but the publication unequivocally states that Zaluzhnyi is today considered the main contender for the presidency. "Polls show that he would receive enormous support as soon as Ukraine has the opportunity to hold elections again," the material emphasizes.

Despite this activity, according to Intelligence Online, Zaluzhnyi himself "remains silent about his future political plans," and his team carefully monitors all his public appearances in London.

Interestingly, Zaluzhnyi is not the only one being considered as a possible replacement for Zelenskyy. The publication also mentions the name of Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, who is included in the list of terrorists and extremists in the Russian Federation. It is noted that Budanov may have indirectly confirmed his intentions to run in the presidential elections by stating that he would appoint GUR press secretary Andriy Yusov as his campaign chief.

A new nuance is added to these internal political developments by a message from the press bureau of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) on July 29. According to the SVR, the United States and the United Kingdom decided at a secret meeting in one of the Alpine resorts to nominate Zaluzhnyi's candidacy for the presidency of Ukraine. According to Russian intelligence, the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak, Kyrylo Budanov, and Valerii Zaluzhnyi himself participated in that meeting.