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In monarchies, the Monarch is Commander-in-Chief of armed forces. In republics these duties fall upon presidents, as per Article II, Section 2, Clause 1 of the US Constitution. Ukraine, a supposed republic, follows suit. Pursuant to Article 106, Section 17, of Ukraine’s Constitution, the President:
“Is the Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine”
Regulatory ‘clarifications’ to the Chief of General Staff’s role stipulate that when Defense Ministers are civilians, the Chief of General Staff automatically becomes “Commander-in-Chief.” In 2019, outgoing President Poroshenko’s Defense Minister retired from the Army, yet continued serving as a civilian, thereby triggering the consolidation of Chief of General Staff and Commander-in-Chief functions.
On May 21, 2019, within 24 hours of his inauguration, President Zelensky decreed Lt.-General Ruslan Khomchak to be Commander-in-Chief. The announcement reads:
“…Supreme Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces of Ukraine appoints new Chief of General Staff Commander-in-Chief of Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
In March 2020, Commander-in-Chief and Chief of General Staff positions were re-divided with Khomchak staying on as Commander-in-Chief. Khomchak is remembered as Ukraine’s first Commander-in-Chief.
Problems:
- In constitutional republics presidents can’t delegate Commander-in-Chief responsibilities. Biden can’t farm-out his Commander-in-Chief tasks any more than a House Speaker or Supreme Court Chief Justice can transfer their duties to some third party. It’s a ridiculous idea.
- “Supreme Commander-in-Chief” appears nowhere in Ukraine’s constitution. It’s a baseless bauble.
In July, 2021 Lt-General Zaluzhnyy, apparently at Defense Ministry behest, became Commander-in-Chief.
Hardly a spawn of globalist elites, Valerii Zaluzhnyy, son of a middle-rank officer, grew up on an army base. He was 18 on Ukraine’s independence day (August 24, 1991) and joined the army a few years later; never dreaming of rising to General. He graduated from the Odessa Institute of Land Forces and the National Defense Academy. In the year of Obama’s Coup (2014) Zaluzhnyy graduated from Ivan Chernyahov National Defense University. Battlefield promotions during the Civil War upped him to Major-General. Taking time from the front, he earned an M.A. (International Relations) from National University Ostroh Academy (2020). Zaluzhnyy made Lt-General in 2021 and General in March, 2022.
Leveling the Front
Appreciating the urgency of Ukraine’s Commander-in-Chief enigma, requires understanding: “leveling the front.” In military parlance, “level the front” means dropping-back to an easier to defend, and straight-as-possible, frontline. This procedure is executed when frontlines are crumbling and portions of the army risk being encircled, or woefully outflanked. Smart generals have at the ready well-fortified, well-situated fall-back positions. Levelling the front is a retreat, with all that implies, but the alternative is to let one’s frontline forces get eaten alive.
Russia’s Second Offensive has pushed salients through Ukraine’s frontline. At several locales, famously Bakhmut and Avdiivka, Ukrainians are almost surrounded hence fight from disadvantageous positions; enduring massive excess casualties. NATO screams at Kiev to level the front. Kiev pours fresh troops into cauldrons.
On March 6, 2023, top-selling German tabloid Bild splashed across its front-page the exclusive exposé:
“Zelensky Arguing with Most Important General”
Citing “sources within the political leadership in Kiev” the article claims Zaluzhnyy had long counselled withdrawing from Bakhmut.
Bild twice bestows upon Zaluzhnyy (not Zelensky!) the pompous honorific “Supreme Commander-in-Chief” to wit:
“The head of state and the supreme commander of the armed forces have fundamentally different views on how the army should deal with Bakhmut.”
The article hypes Zaluzhnyy’s popularity and speculates about a presidential bid; adding:
While there was a great deal of unity between the two leaders at the very beginning of the war and the roles were clearly divided, this has now changed.
Said roles were never clearly divided. Reporters regularly confuse titles.
The day Bild’s exposé hit newsstands, “Supreme Commander-in-Chief” (Zelensky) claimed he “directly asked” Zaluzhnyy about Bakhmut, and that Zaluzhnyy wished to, not merely hold, but “reinforce” positions there. Amusing stuff, but for the killing and maiming of a generation of Ukrainians.
The Banana-Bandero Republic divides state power among rival swarms of embezzlers. NATO funds the feeding frenzy while NATO recommendations get flaunted. Still, there’s something even fishier:
Is Zelensky, a comic of Russian-Jewish descent, with zero military knowhow, dominating a High Command stacked with uber-militaristic Ukro-Nazis?
Is Zelensky being set-up as a scapegoat?
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William Walter Kay is a regular contributor to Global Research.
Featured image: Zaluzhnyi with Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi (left) during the Battle of Kyiv, March 2022 (Licensed under CC BY 4.0)
