(Portal) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called for rapid changes in the operation of Ukraine’s military medical system on Sunday as he announced the dismissal of the commander of the medical forces.
Zelenskiy’s move was announced at his meeting with Defense Minister Rustem Umerov and coincided with a debate over the conduct of the 20-month-old war against Russia, with questions raised about how quickly a counteroffensive is progressing in the east and south.
“Priorities were set at today’s meeting with Defense Minister Umerov,” Zelensky said in his evening video address. “There is little time left to wait for results. When changes are imminent, quick action is required.”
Zelensky said he replaced Maj. Gen. Tetyana Ostashenko as commander of the armed forces’ medical forces.
“The task is clear, as has been emphasized again and again in society, especially among combat medics, we need fundamentally new medical support for our soldiers,” he said.
This included a range of topics – better tourniquets, digitization and better communication.
Umerov confirmed the change in a post on messaging app Telegram, citing digitalization, tactical medicine and rotation of soldiers as his top priorities.
“The experience of the effectiveness of individual units should be extended to the entire defense force.”
The Ukrainian military reported progress in recapturing occupied areas in the east and south and confirmed last week that troops had taken control of areas on the eastern bank of the Dnipro River in the southern Kherson region.
Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Gen. Valery Zaluzhniy said in an essay published this month that the war is entering a new phase of attrition and Ukraine needs more sophisticated technology to counter the Russian military.
While Zelensky repeatedly stressed that progress would take time, he denied that the war was heading toward a stalemate and called on Kiev’s Western partners, particularly the United States, to maintain high levels of military support.
Ostashenko was replaced by Major General Anatoly Kasmirchuk, head of a military clinic in Kiev.
Her dismissal came a week after a Ukrainian news agency, following consultations with medics and other officials responsible for supporting the military, indicated that her dismissal, as well as those of others, was imminent.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski and Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Editing by Chris Reese and Bernadette Baum)