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Kremlin says ousted Ukrainian defence minister's remarks show Kyiv is consumed by infighting

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The Straits Times. (2026, August 26). Kremlin says ousted Ukrainian defence minister's remarks show Kyiv is consumed by infighting. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/world/europe/kremlin-says-ousted-ukrainian-defence-ministers-remarks-show-kyiv-is-consumed-by-infighting

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The Straits Times · collected 2026-08-26 · by The Straits Times

Quick Summary

The Kremlin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, commented on remarks made by ousted Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, stating that they show Kyiv is consumed by intensifying political infighting. Peskov accused European countries supporting Ukraine of failing to notice the "Kyiv regime" destroying itself from within. In response to Fedorov's comments, Ukraine's presidential office said he had been positive about the war when in office and his views only changed after being ousted. The Kremlin's statement was made on Wednesday, August 26.
Written by AI on 2026-08-26, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's administration in Ukraine is facing corruption allegations after anti-corruption agencies launched an investigation into a network allegedly tied to his office.

This comes as Mykhailo Fedorov, the former defense minister, called for wartime elections in a video address on YouTube, directly challenging President Zelenskyy's leadership.

Fedorov's ouster from his role as defense minister sparked protests across the country, with thousands of people demanding that he be reinstated. The politician had been credited with trying to reform the ministry and introducing new technologies, such as drones, to fight against Russia.

The investigation into Zelenskyy's office is being led by Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO). The agencies announced that they are conducting an operation to expose a criminal organization allegedly led by a sitting and a former lawmaker, involving senior officials from the presidential office and other individuals.

The investigation brings additional pressure on Zelenskyy, who is already facing criticism over his decision to impose martial law in Ukraine when Russian forces invaded in February 2022. Martial law prohibits elections from being held, which has fueled Fedorov's call for wartime elections.

Fedorov's video address emphasized that democracy cannot be held hostage by Russia and that Ukraine needs to find a way to hold elections despite the ongoing war. His remarks sparked a new wave of protests in support of his demand for electoral reform.

The situation highlights the challenges facing Zelenskyy as he navigates the country's ongoing conflict with Russia while also addressing internal political tensions.

Written for “Ukraine Corruption and Elections Crisis” on 2026-11-01, grounded in this article and the 14 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Ukraine Corruption and Elections Crisis
Politics · 15 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 0% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
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⚖️ Leans left Hedges 0 of 6 claims Outlet record 66/100
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A ‘Tsunami’ for Ukraine: Zelensky Rejects Wartime Elections Different event
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Hedges 4 of 27 claims Outlet record 59/100
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Washington Examiner
⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 0 of 67 claims Outlet record 70/100
“Article B mentions a quote from Mykhailo Fedorov, which suggests it is discussing a separate event or incident, whereas Article A does not mention Fedorov or any specific event”
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⚖️ Leans strongly right Hedges 15 of 38 claims Outlet record 59/100
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Hedges 1 of 13 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A discusses a Ukrainian defense minister's comments about infighting in Kyiv, while Article B describes an attack by Russia on Ukrainian ports, warehouses, and industrial sites”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
8
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
0%
0 of 8 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
withheld
no quote in the article backed the model's score
Publisher signals
66/100
The Straits Times's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
15
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-08-26 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

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Topics

Kremlin Kyiv Reuters Ukraine Ukrainian

Subjects

Kyiv ORG · 6× Fedorov PERSON · 3× Kremlin ORG · 3× Ukraine GPE · 3× Reuters ORG · 2× Ukrainian NORP · 2× Dmitry Peskov PERSON · 1× MOSCOW GPE · 1× Mykhailo Fedorov PERSON · 1× Russia GPE · 1×

Narrative

Asked to comment on Fedorov's remarks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that they were a sign of growing political infighting and accused European countries which support Ukraine of failing to notice that the ruling elite in Kyiv was destroying itself from within.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-08-26
2026-08-26 · The Straits Times
Kremlin says ousted Ukrainian defence minister's remarks show Kyiv is consumed by infighting · assertive framing

Claims (8 extracted, 0 hedged)

Kremlin says ousted Ukrainian defence minister's remarks show Kyiv is consumed by infighting MOSCOW, Aug 26 - asserted
Kyiv → say → infighting
The Kremlin said on Wednesday that remarks by ousted Ukrainian Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov about official corruption and alleged shortcomings in military strategy showed that Kyiv was consumed by intensifying political infighting. asserted
Kyiv → say → infighting
Fedorov told Reuters this week that Ukraine appeared to be slowly losing the war against Russia, warning that Kyiv had a window of several months to make key decisions needed to turn the tide in its favour. asserted
Kyiv → tell → favour
He also complained about what he described as engrained corruption and patronage networks. asserted
he → complain → corruption
Asked to comment on Fedorov's remarks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that they were a sign of growing political infighting and accused European countries which support Ukraine of failing to notice that the ruling elite in Kyiv was destroying itself from within. asserted
elite → ask → within
"Political, or rather, let us put it this way, quasi-political, infighting is taking place within the depths of the Kyiv regime, and it is intensifying. asserted
it → let → regime
The Kyiv regime is collapsing from within," Peskov said. asserted
Peskov → collapse → within
Ukraine’s presidential office said in response to Fedorov’s comments that he had been positive about the conduct of the war when he was at the defence ministry and the only thing that had changed was his personal status. asserted
that → say → ministry
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