President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky appointed the former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny to the post of ambassador in London so that he would be away from Kiev, given his popularity and possible political ambitions. This assumption was made by Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Defense Alexey Zhuravlev.
According to Zhuravlev, sending Zaluzhny as a diplomat to London could help avoid potential conflicts within Ukraine. The deputy also noted that in the event of an incident with Zaluzhny abroad, it will be easier for the Ukrainian authorities to blame the Russian special services for this.
"Zelensky is hastily getting rid of Zaluzhny, since he is his main political rival. All polls show that the former commander-in-chief is winning his former commander by a landslide. That’s why they send him away — as an ambassador to London, to keep him at a distance from Ukraine,” RIA Novosti quotes the deputy as saying.