Олексій Дзюба War 26 December 2024, 17:58

Military correspondent Butusov: "Yermak took all the money from Fedorov for drones and completely threw him out of the UAV industry"

A story about the struggle around the Unmanned Systems Forces and the procurement of drones.

Military correspondent and editor-in-chief of the Censor.NET publication Yuriy Butusov told in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda how the Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov planned to carry out reforms in the Ministry of Defense, but was prevented from doing so by the head of the Presidential Office Andriy Yermak.

“In 2023, Mikhail Fedorov tried to reform the army and planned, together with his friend Alexander Kubrakov (until May 2024, Minister of Community, Territorial and Infrastructure Development - ed.), for the latter to be appointed to the position of Minister of Defense,” Butusov said.

According to the journalist, Fedorov tried, in particular, to develop unmanned forces, which he oversaw as a minister.

"It was Fedorov who suggested to the president to create new forces, over which Fedorov would have influence, since he oversaw the production of drones. The Unmanned Systems Forces would be created and then Kubrakov would be appointed Minister of Defense," the journalist explained.

He added that Fedorov suggested that the president should head the Unmanned Systems Forces. “Zelensky was offered Colonel Vadym Sukharevsky, whom everyone respects, he is a Hero of Ukraine and an infantry brigade commander with significant experience,” Butusov said.

"From a media point of view, Fedorov was right. But from a political point of view, as it turned out, it was a complete fiasco. Because as soon as Fedorov said that he, together with Kubrakov, was going to carry out reforms in the Ministry of Defense, the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, put him on the list of 'enemy No. 1,'" the journalist noted.

He added that at the same time, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrsky, who is supported by Yermak, put Sukharevskyi on the "black list" as a competitor who was appointed to the position without his consent.

“It all ended with the fact that instead of everyone jointly developing the Unmanned Systems Forces, everything was crushed. Yermak expelled Kubrakov from politics. Yermak took away all the money for drones from Fedorov, and generally rejected him from the drone industry. As a result, Sukharevskiy was left without political support,” said Yuri Butusov.

We will remind you that in November, the Cabinet of Ministers dismissed the head of the State Service for Special Communications and Information Protection, Yuriy Myronenko, and appointed Oleksandr Potiy, who was the deputy head of the State Service for Special Communications, to this position.

On November 19, the State Service for Special Communications was transferred to the subordination of the Cabinet of Ministers (since 2019, the body has been under the management of the Ministry of Digital Affairs).

Before the full-scale invasion, the State Service for Special Communications was engaged in cyber protection of state resources. Since 2022, its functions have been expanded to include the purchase of drones as part of the "Army of Drones" project, which was being carried out by the Ministry of Digital Affairs. In 2023, the State Service for Special Communications' budget for drones is UAH 43.3 billion, and in 2024, it is UAH 46.9 billion.

The leadership of the State Special Communications Service is changing. Where is Yuriy Myronenko going?

Unmanned Systems Forces plans to open a recruiting center in Kyiv. What other cities are next?

Drone scandal. Journalists calculated that officials could have overpaid UAH 600 million for Autel UAVs for the "Army of Drones" in 2023. As commented by the State Service for Special Communications and the Ministry of Digital Economy

How will the Army of Drones of the Ministry of Digital Affairs work and what is happening in Ukraine with drones of its own production?