Zelensky dismisses one of the military commanders
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismisses Major General of the Medical Service Tetiana Ostashchenko
Presidentof Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Tetyana Ostashchenko from the postof Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The head ofstate announced this inhis evening address on 19 November.
"Todaywe have an important personnel decision. Upon the proposal of the Minister ofDefence, I have changed the Commander of the Medical Forces of the Armed Forcesof Ukraine. Instead of Major General of the Medical Service Tetyana Ostashchenko,I have appointed Major General of the Medical Service Anatoliy Kazmirchuk, thehead of the National Military Medical Clinical Centre "Main MilitaryClinical Hospital" in Kyiv, as the new commander," the head of statesaid.
Accordingto the President, the society and the community of combat medics haverepeatedly stated that "a fundamentally new level of medical support forour warriors is needed".
"Fromhigh-quality turnstiles to full digitalisation and transparency in supply, fromhigh-quality training to sincere communication with combat medics in thoseunits where medicine is deployed correctly and effectively. The experience ofthe effectiveness of specific units should be extended to the entire defenceforces. Today, at a meeting with Defence Minister Umerov, we identifiedpriorities, and there will not be much time to wait for results. We need tomove forward with changes quickly," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
Reasons for dismissal – problems in supplyingthe Armed Forces of Ukraine
Defence MinisterRustem Umerov said that the reasons for his submission to replace the commanderof the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are obvious to everyonewho fights in the ranks of the Defence Forces.
"Ihave submitted a proposal to the President of Ukraine to replace the Commanderof the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. I believe that thereasons for this step are obvious to everyone who fights in the ranks of theUkrainian Defence Forces and everyone who helps. We have discussed this issuemany times. It is time to solve the problems of medical support for oursoldiers," Umerov wrote on Facebook.
Theminister also named the tasks to be solved in this area:
- Maximumdigitalisation of processes and compliance with all standards of medical care,including the supply of quality medicines and medical equipment. There shouldbe no such problems as low-quality turnstiles in principle.
- Developinga system of tactical medicine training in line with NATO standards withappropriate resources. Implementation of all medical practices necessary forthe frontline that will save as many lives as possible.
- Ensureconstant rotation of personnel between the tactical and strategic levels toensure the acquisition and transfer of experience in the entire cycle oftreatment of the wounded, injured and sick.
On 13November, the Ukrainian media reported that Defence Minister Rustem Umerov was preparing a motion todismiss the commander of the Armed Forces Medical Forces, TetyanaOstashchenko, the commander of the Tavria Operational and Strategic Grouping,Oleksandr Tarnavsky, and the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forcesof Ukraine, Serhiy Nayev.
On 7November, Ukrainian MP from the European Solidarity party, Volodymyr Ariev,citing a 'reliable source', spreadinformation that Rustem Umerov had allegedly made a 'submission to theSupreme Commander-in-Chief's Office' to dismiss Zaluzhnyi. His post was pickedup by the Russian media. Later, Ariev said that he was deleting the previouspost, citing "many other sources" that refuted the claims of another"source".
