Zaluzhnyi, known as the ‘Iron General’, experienced observed his once sky-high level of popularity falter right after a unsuccessful counteroffensive.

Ukraine has named Valerii Zaluzhnyi its new envoy to the United Kingdom a thirty day period after he was removed from his placement as the country’s commander-in-chief.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine despatched a request to the British side for an settlement,” the overseas ministry said in a assertion on Thursday.

Ukraine has not experienced an ambassador in the British isles because President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed former envoy Vadym Prystaiko in July 2023 soon after he publicly criticised the chief.

Zaluzhnyi experienced led the Ukrainian army considering the fact that the begin of the war towards Russia, pushing again a vastly far more strong invading pressure in the 1st months of the conflict.

Dubbed the “Iron General” by Ukrainian media, Zaluzhnyi came to symbolise the country’s resistance and savored sky-high acceptance rankings among the general public.

But the failure of a considerably-vaunted counteroffensive previous summer and general public disagreement with Zelenskyy tarnished his name in the president’s business office.

He was changed in February by Oleksandr Syrskii, who commanded Ukraine’s lightning autumn 2022 counteroffensive in the northeastern Kharkiv area.

Ukraine’s armed service method ‘must change’

At the time of Zaluzhnyi’s dismissal, Zelenskyy took to X to thank the army leader for his two several years of company and said that the time had come for variations in the armed service leadership.

Zaluzhnyi himself conceded that Ukraine’s armed service system “must change” soon after around two a long time given that Russia introduced its comprehensive-scale invasion.

“The jobs of 2022 are distinctive from these of 2024. Hence, everybody must change and adapt to the new realities as perfectly in order to gain alongside one another,” he wrote.

“The war does not continue to be the identical. War improvements and demands transform. New methods and new procedures are required,” Ukraine’s Defence Minister Rustem Umerov mentioned at the time of his dismissal.

The Uk continues to be a critical ally

On Thursday, British isles Defence Secretary Grant Shapps frequented Kyiv, Zelenskyy claimed on X.

“Our major focus was on bolstering Ukraine’s air defence and extensive-vary capabilities, as effectively as meeting other urgent desires for weapons and ammunition and creating joint weapon creation,” he reported.

Zaluzhnyi was not seen in the photos of the assembly shared by the Ukrainian president.

Right now, I hosted the Uk Secretary of State for Defense @grantshapps to focus on continued defense cooperation among Ukraine and the United Kingdom.

Our key focus was on bolstering Ukraine’s air protection and long-assortment abilities, as nicely as assembly other urgent needs for… pic.twitter.com/vBO253sSY3

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) March 7, 2024

Right after the meeting, the Uk Ministry of Defence said that it would provide Ukraine with more than 10,000 drones to support its combat versus Russia.

The ministry also reported it was paying out a even more 125 million British lbs . ($160m) on “cutting-edge drones”, bringing its overall drone package to Ukraine to 325 million pounds ($416m).