LEILA FADEL, HOST:
Ukraine's popular tech-savvy defense minister has been fired. He pushed the use of drones, which successfully turned the tables on Russia. Joining us to discuss why this is happening is NPR's Joanna Kakissis. Good morning, Joanna.
JOANNA KAKISSIS, BYLINE: Good morning.
FADEL: So tell us about this defense minister.
KAKISSIS: So Mykhailo Fedorov is only 35, but he's accomplished a lot. For example, he led Ukraine's digital transformation in his previous government post. And his dismissal is part of a government reshuffle by Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Now, Fedorov has been in the defense post for only six months. But during this time, there has been dramatic improvement in Ukraine's position on the battlefield. For example, he persuaded Elon Musk to switch off Starlink internet terminals that were being used by the Russian military, and he advocated for a campaign of mid-range drone strikes that have disrupted Russian logistics. Now, Fedorov spoke to reporters today, and here's a little bit of what he said.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
MYKHAILO FEDOROV: (Through interpreter) I don't need to be minister of defense just to be minister of defense. I need this position so we can win this war.
KAKISSIS: We also spoke to Ihor Fedirko, who leads the Ukrainian Council of Defense Industry. And he told us Fedorov has pushed for the innovative use of Ukraine's cutting-edge drones in warfare.
IHOR FEDIRKO: One of the faces of the modern and technological war - it's Mykhailo Fedorov. He totally changed the rules. He's not afraid to take some risk and responsibility.
KAKISSIS: Now, he also said Fedorov was trying to make arms procurement more transparent, which may have angered those who make money off weapons.
FADEL: And you're describing a lot of successful moves by this defense minister. Has Zelenskyy explained why he removed him and is rearranging his government like this?
KAKISSIS: Well, you know, Zelenskyy changes his Cabinet a lot. This is, I think, his third reshuffle. I spoke to Oleksandr Merezhko, a lawmaker with Zelenskyy's party, and he said he's not even sure why Zelenskyy dissolved this government. But Merezhko suspects Zelenskyy fired Fedorov because Fedorov clashed with old-school military generals and because of his controversial reforms on how men are drafted into military service. Now, Zelenskyy is expected to nominate Ukraine's current interior minister - he's this former police general with traditional ideas - to replace Fedorov.
FADEL: So will this have an impact, then, on Ukraine's development of defense technology?
KAKISSIS: Well, Leila, the innovation is expected to continue. Defense makes up at least 30% of Ukraine's GDP, and defense tech is the fastest-growing industry here. Ukraine just signed a drone deal with the EU and another deal on missile production with France. But, you know, there is concern that without someone tech-savvy helming Ukraine's defense ministry, opportunities to turn Ukraine's drone and defense tech knowledge into more momentum on the battlefield may actually dry up.
FADEL: President Trump recently agreed to grant Ukraine licenses to make missiles for the U.S.-designed Patriot air defense system. How quickly can Ukraine actually make those?
KAKISSIS: Well, Zelenskyy told reporters on Wednesday that Ukraine would have the technical capability to do this by the end of the year. But those in the defense industry say that this timeline is probably unrealistic. Fedirko, the defense industry executive we spoke to, told us Ukraine has the production base to make Patriot interceptor missiles, but getting them out there will actually take something like two years.
FEDIRKO: So we have to teach our engineers. We have to test in the first batch of these missiles. We have to understand exactly the standards.
KAKISSIS: Now, Leila, Ukraine needs interceptors like the Patriot missiles to destroy ballistic missiles, which Russia is launching at Ukrainian cities much more frequently these days.
FADEL: That's NPR's Joanna Kakissis in Kyiv. Thank you so much, Joanna.
KAKISSIS: You're welcome, Leila.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
