Pro-Fedorov protest leader says elections call untenable as demonstrations wane
The organizer of protests against the dismissal of former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov said the movement will not pursue electoral demands, as the demonstrations in Kyiv have largely dissipated.
Veteran combat medic Dmytro Koziatynskyi, who coordinated the protests over the removal of former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov, told Reuters that the movement cannot envision holding elections while troops are engaged at the front. He said the protests were intended to seek dialogue with the government, not to push for a vote, and noted that Ukrainian law bars elections during wartime.
"I’m also deeply concerned about the societal divisions during the election process and how that could affect the course of the war," Koziatynskyi said. "In any case, street protests are definitely not the place for electoral discourse."
Reuters reported that only a few dozen demonstrators remained in a central Kyiv square, down from thousands earlier in the week. One participant, 22-year-old Iryna Vasyliaka, said the protests were never about elections.
Analysts described Fedorov’s call for elections as a strategic error. An opposition lawmaker told Reuters that the suggestion showed a lack of presidential-level perspective, while Olena Prokopenko of the German Marshall Fund called it a "false start" that could erode his political capital.
In Kyiv, a heavy Russian missile and drone attack killed at least 16 people and damaged homes, a school and a children’s medical centre, according to Mayor Vitali Klitschko. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed for a stronger international response, warning that without sufficient anti-ballistic defence, Russia would not be compelled to negotiate peace.
A Romanian F-16 fighter jet intercepted an explosives-laden Russian marine drone near the Neptun Deep offshore gas project. Romanian President Nicușor Dan condemned the incident, and Defence Minister Radu Miruță said the drone did not originate from Ukraine.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen criticised what she called a "hybrid warfare" campaign by Russia against the EU, urging member states to enhance defence capabilities.
Poland announced the arrest of a Ukrainian man suspected of planting an improvised explosive device under a car belonging to a Ukrainian arms-industry official, allegedly on behalf of Russian intelligence.
The Ukrainian General Staff said its forces struck Russia’s Taneco oil refinery in Tatarstan and the Tamanneftegaz terminal in Krasnodar, causing fires at both sites. In Moscow, fuel shortages have led to long queues and confrontations at petrol stations.
President Zelenskyy also reported Russian attacks on gas infrastructure in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region and a border crossing in Odesa near Moldova.