Ukraine war briefing: Zelenskyy replaces head of general staff of the armed forces

The Guardian

17-03-2025

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has appointed Andriy Gnatov as chief of the general staff of the armed forces, replacing Anatoliy Bargylevych, who has been moved to chief inspector of the defence ministry. 'He [Gnatov] is a combat guy,' Zelenskyy said. 'His task is to bring more combat experience … Everything that our brigades have learned from the war should be implemented 100% at the planning level.' Ukraine's defence minister, Rustem Umerov, posted: 'We are systematically transforming the armed forces of Ukraine to enhance their combat effectiveness. This involves restructuring the command system and implementing clear standards.'
Russia launched a drone attack on Kyiv, its mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said early on Monday, adding that Ukrainian air defence units were responding. Reuters said its witnesses heard blasts that sounded like air defences in action. On Sunday, Kyiv said Moscow had launched 90 Iranian Shahed drones on to nine Ukrainian regions.
Emmanuel Macron has said France, the UK, and other nations providing security guarantees for Ukraine after any eventual ceasefire would not be aiming to deploy a 'mass' of soldiers but instead could send contingents of several thousand troops to key locations in Ukraine without needing Russia's permission. From Paris, Angelique Chrisafis writes that the French president insisted: 'Under no circumstances can the Ukrainians make territorial concessions without having any security guarantees.' Macron said Russia 'does not give the impression it sincerely wants peace'; on the contrary, the Russian president was 'escalating the fighting' and 'wants to get everything, then negotiate'.
Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin are expected this week to discuss the ceasefire proposed by the US and Ukraine, write Edward Helmore and Shaun Walker. Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff said he thinks 'the two presidents are going to have a really good and positive discussion this week', and Trump 'really expects there to be some sort of deal in the coming weeks, maybe, and I believe that's the case'. Moscow said the US secretary of state, Marco Rubio, had called his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. 'Sergei Lavrov and Marco Rubio agreed to remain in contact,' the Russian foreign ministry said, with no mention of the proposed ceasefire. Witkoff claimed Putin accepted the 'philosophy' of the ceasefire. However, Putin has been vague about what terms he would demand or accept.
Late on Sunday, Zelenskyy said he had spoken with Canada's new prime minister, Mark Carney. 'The prime minister made the right points about how we need to step up pressure on Moscow,' Zelenskyy said. 'The shadow fleet, the banking sector. We must impose all-out sanctions on everything that provides Russia with funding for its war. Only then can we force Putin to a just and lasting peace.' Carney is due in France on Monday for talks with Emmanuel Macron that will cover the war in Ukraine, before travelling to London to meet Keir Starmer, the British PM.
Lithuania on Sunday backed an EU proposal to pledge up to €40bn in military aid for Ukraine this year and said a similar amount would also be needed in future years. While some EU countries have responded cautiously to the initiative, Lithuania's foreign minister, Kestutis Budrys, said long-term military support for Ukraine should not depend on the outcome of any peace talks as it was already clear Kyiv would need to maintain strong 'deterrence forces for Russians not to return'. Lithuania spent 2.85% of GDP on defence in 2024, according to Nato estimates, and has committed to raising that figure to 5% to 6% between 2026 and 2030.
Russia would demand that Nato members exclude Ukraine from membership and that it will remain neutral in any peace deal, Alexander Grushko, a Russian deputy foreign minister, has told the Russian media outlet Izvestia.