KYIV: Large protests erupted in several Ukrainian cities on Thursday morning against the removal of popular Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. AFP reporters in Kyiv saw more than a thousand people gathered on a central square, singing the Ukrainian national anthem, waving Ukrainian and EU flags and chanting “shame” and “bring Fedorov back. Only appointed six months ago, Fedorov carved a reputation as a modernizer who tried to reform the Ukrainian military, worn down by more than four years of the Russian invasion.

Hundreds protest in Kyiv after President Zelenskyy dismisses Defence Minister Fedorov, a moderniser credited with slowing Russia’s advance.

Champion of drones Fedorov was popular, successful defence minister. In his brief tenure he fought corruption and ruffled feathers, Sacking him may be a big mistake.