Feb 26 (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday sacked a top military commander who was helping to lead the fight against Russian forces in the country’s besieged east, but gave no reason for the move.
In a one-line decree, Zelensky announced the dismissal of Eduard Moskalev from the post of commander of the combined forces of Ukraine, which is fighting in the Donbass region.
Zelensky mentioned Moskalev in a speech on Friday when he mentioned the names of the military commanders he spoke to. Moskalyov has been in the position since March 2022, shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Neither the Joint Forces Facebook nor Twitter accounts made any mention of the dismissal.
Russian forces are making a concerted effort to capture the two eastern regions that make up the Donbass River, and Zelensky in recent weeks has variously described the military situation in the east as difficult and painful.
Pro-Moscow units focus their efforts on the city of Bakhmut, launching frequent attacks despite suffering what Ukrainian and Western officials describe as heavy casualties.
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In a Facebook post, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine said that Russian forces carried out several unsuccessful attacks in the Bakhmut region on Sunday.
(Reporting by David Leungren). Editing by Jonathan Otis
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