A bid by ousted Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov to broaden a political fight with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by calling for wartime elections appears to have backfired, failing to win over protesters who had demanded his return.
Zelenskyy's decision to sack the tech-savvy and reform-minded minister in a government reshuffle in July triggered protests in Kyiv and other cities.
Many of the protesters said the dismissal of the popular young minister was poorly explained and could threaten Ukraine's war effort against Russia, and continued protests throughout the summer to demand Zelenskyy reinstate him.
Despite the protests, parliament on Wednesday approved a new defense minister chosen by Zelenskyy and later that day only a few dozen people remained in a central Kyiv square where thousands once joined rare wartime protests.
"When we came out to protest, we did not come with the idea that elections should be held," 22-year-old Iryna Vasyliaka told Reuters late on Wednesday. "That is not what we were here for."
