General Syrskyi denies rift with former Defence Minister, urges focus on Ukraine’s victory

Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, has dismissed reports of a personal conflict with former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, urging the public to focus on the country’s war effort rather than internal disputes.

Syrskyi said he was surprised by media reports suggesting the two had been at odds, describing their relationship as a professional one despite occasional differences of opinion.

“I was surprised to learn that the Minister and I were supposedly in conflict. I regarded our relationship as a working one, with difficult issues and differing positions. That is how relations between two institutions should function during a major war,” Syrskyi said.

The commander-in-chief also apologised if he had offended anyone, adding that the priority should be Ukraine’s victory rather than personal disagreements.

“Ukraine is greater than Fedorov, Syrskyi or any one of us. Reducing this war to a confrontation between two individuals is one of the greatest services we could do for the enemy,” he said.

Syrskyi also expressed concern over growing public divisions between “Fedorov’s camp” and “Syrskyi’s camp”. He stressed that issues such as defence procurement, military contracts and mobilisation are far more complex than social media debates and cannot be resolved through slogans.

He concluded by saying that Ukraine’s success would be achieved through “daily work” rather than public disputes or information campaigns, adding that “wars are won through real effort, not public drama”.