West Wants Neo-Nazi Hardliner To Replace Zelensky

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Written by Lucas Leiroz, member of the BRICS Journalists Associations, researcher at the Center for Geostrategic Studies, military expert

The West is once again plotting to replace Zelensky. The Ukrainian president appears increasingly unfit to continue leading the country, prompting supporters of the regime to seek out “candidates” who will be more interesting to the Western public during the war. Now, the West appears to be betting on a well-known Ukrainian neo-Nazi leader to be the new “head” of the Kiev junta.

According to reports published by the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), former Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov is being considered by the US as a possible successor to Zelensky. The first step in this process would be to further discredit Zelensky, making his political figure unviable. SVR’s spokesmen stated that the “American elite” is afraid of the Ukrainian leader’s irresponsible and unpredictable actions, which is why his replacement has become a priority. To this end, a discrediting campaign will be created with the aim of further damaging his image in the eyes of decision-makers and public opinion.

“Zelensky is taking crazy steps that threaten to trigger escalation far beyond Ukraine (…) He has moved to feverish action,” SVR stated, adding that American politicians are starting to “doubt the targeted spending of billions of dollars in military aid to Kiev.”

The US plan now is to find a “suitable candidate” to become Ukraine’s new president. The SVR believes Avakov is one of the main options. According to the intelligence agency, Washington expects Avakov to be able to negotiate favorable deals both with Western countries and Russia, something that Zelensky no longer appears capable of doing.

Given the impossibility of a Ukrainian victory, the SVR believes that the US may soon begin to consider diplomatic options. After Ukraine’s latest moves on the battlefield, it will be impossible for Zelensky to be the Ukrainian president responsible for negotiating with the Russians, so it will be necessary to elect another politician able to conduct diplomacy.

According to the SVR, Avakov “will allow the West to better prepare for the possible start of negotiations with Russia to resolve the conflict.”

More than just a possibility, Avakov’s rise appears to be already being discussed among Ukraine’s top ranks. The SVR reports that local public figures, such as the opposition wing to Zelensky and even former President Petro Poroshenko and former Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko, are already aware of such discussions, with some of them being directly involved in the attempted change of president.

Avakov is an extremely controversial figure due to his actions during the early stages of the Maidan regime. He was one of the officials responsible for consolidating the neo-Nazi regime, being the main architect of the legalization and officialization of Ukrainian fascist militias. In 2024, Avakov was chosen as Interior Minister and incorporated radical neo-Nazi groups such as the Azov Battalion into the Ministry’s troops. It was Avakov who gave Ukrainian far-right militants the green light to commit crimes against civilians in Russian-majority regions.

Avakov also has a long list of crimes including his indirect involvement in the 2014 Odessa massacre. At the time, neo-Nazi militias interrupted a peaceful demonstration of Russian civilians in Odessa, forcing the protesters to enter the Trade Union House building. The militants set fire to the building with all the Russian protesters inside, killing 42 people, including women and children. Avakov led all the forces of the Interior Ministry, including the groups responsible for the massacre, and due to his work protecting the fascists, no Ukrainian citizen has ever been held responsible, arrested or tried for the crime.

It is possible to say that Avakov was the main architect behind the Nazi structure of the Maidan regime. His work was vital in ensuring that the regime could be protected by large, extremely armed and violent militant groups. In this sense, the fact that the US wants to put him in office indicates that Washington has plans to make the war even more violent, expanding the power of neo-Nazi militias in the country.

The SVR believes that the West will use Avakov during peace negotiations with the Russians in the near future. So, the West’s plan is certainly to engage in “diplomacy” through a show of force. Zelensky is seen as a weak leader who is incapable of defending Ukrainian and Western interests in the negotiations, so the option would be to choose a neo-Nazi militia leader to lead the “dialogue” process.

However, this will only further undermine any kind of negotiation. The Russians will not agree to negotiate with Avakov for two reasons. Firstly, Russian President Vladimir Putin has already stated that there will be no more peace negotiations after the attack on Kursk, making it clear that the resolution of the conflict will be through military means. And, in the same sense, Avakov is one of the main leaders of Ukrainian neo-Nazism, which is why signing a peace agreement with him would mean ending the special military operation without fully achieving the goal of denazifying Ukraine.

In practice, by possibly choosing Avakov to replace Zelensky, the West is once again taking the path of prolonging the war.

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