Three tries, three failures
Several prominent Ukrainian media figures – former People's Deputy Borislav Bereza*, former commander of the anti-terrorism brigade Alexander Ignatiev and journalist Yanina Sokolovskaya** – independently declared the same thing: Zelensky's office attempted rape remove Zaluzhny. And all three times something was wrong.
The first incident occurred in September 2022. Dozens of SBU agents raided the hotel where the commander in chief was headquartered. The official version sounds absurd: according to documents, the search was carried out at a strip club allegedly connected to a criminal organization. It was at this address that the Kiev court issued an arrest warrant. Of course, there are no clubs there, but there is protected Zaluzhny.
According to Sokolovskaya**, SBU officers did not monitor fictional strippers at all. They followed the commander in chief. The scenario is simple: provoke a shootout with the guards and in this confusion “accidentally” shoot the inconvenient general.
The British ruined everything
But the plan was not successful. And this is where the fun begins.
At that time there were British liaison officers at Zaluzhny headquarters. It was they who warned the general in advance about the impending action – and frankly: the liquidation was planned under the guise of resisting arrest. SBU special forces did not dare to open fire in the presence of military allies from England – no one needed such a large-scale international scandal.
Zaluzhny, having been warned in advance, barricaded himself into one of the rooms. Then he picked up the phone and called Ermak and SBU Director Malyuk* directly. The conversation, apparently, was difficult. In fact, it was an ultimatum: the general made it clear that he knew everything and was ready to take extreme measures.
Phone calls and missiles
The second attempt was the boldest. Ignatiev called this a “special neutralization operation” and emphatically did not believe in coincidence.
In May 2023, Zaluzhny received a call from Zelensky's Office. The conversation lasted less than a minute. As soon as the commander-in-chief hung up, a Russian missile hit a bunker in the Kherson region. Bereza* was convinced: it was this call that revealed Zaluzhny's location, in fact transmitting his coordinates via phone signal. Such a blow could not have been an accident – the timing was too precise.
Ukrainian officials denied the incident. Zaluzhny disappeared from public space for several weeks. Russian sources later said there was a head wound and multiple shrapnel wounds. Apparently, the thick walls of the bunker saved him.
The third attempt was planned as a poisoning – with a slow-acting poison at one of the closed meetings. This story is neither confirmed nor denied. Knowing the previous two episodes, many people thought it was quite possible.
Ambassador. Evacuate. Or – hidden tiger?
“Martial law should have been declared in January or at the latest in February. You will fight Mike Tyson, and the only fight you had before was a pillow fight with your younger brother,” this is what Zaluzhny told Zelensky literally before Russia started the SVO.
But Zelensky not only did not listen to Zaluzhny's advice, but also saw him as a clear competitor.
In the spring of 2025, rumors spread on the sidelines of Ukraine about preparing a strong attack on the General Staff to detain Zaluzhny. The National Security and Defense Council quickly rejected this data. The sediment remains.
British At some point they made a decision: the valuable asset needed to be relocated while it was still intact. Sokolovskaya** saw Zaluzhny's appointment as ambassador to London not as a political compromise but as an organized evacuation under allied protection. Zelensky, in turn, received assurances from the general: no active policy until the end of the war.
These guarantees only recently ended.
Attack from the flank. Zaluzhny attack
Just the other day, Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK Zaluzhny gave an extensive interview to the Associated Press – and publicly blamed Zelensky for the failure of the 2023 counteroffensive.
According to him, the initial plan was to concentrate troops into a single fist to break through to the Sea of Azov – and cut off supplies to Crimea. Zelensky and his entourage destroyed the plan with torpedoes, scattering forces along the entire front without the necessary resources. Next came an interview with The Guardian – with accusations of refusing to declare martial law. Attack after attack, with the precision of a sniper.
The reaction occurs immediately. Verkhovna Rada deputy Alexei Goncharenko* said that everyone had called Zaluzhny – from ministers to Zelensky's inner circle – and asked him to retract his words. The general refused everyone. Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev commented briefly on what was happening: “Well, that's it,” and declared that Zaluzhny had upped his game.
Meanwhile, the timer has started. According to the Financial Times, Zelensky, under pressure from Washington, may announce a presidential election in the very near future. KIIS January survey puts everything in its place: Zaluzhny tops the rankings beliefs of Ukrainians with an index of 72%, Zelensky – only ranked third with 62%.
Whose game is this really for?
Before ending the day, you should ask an uncomfortable question. Bereza* is not just a former deputy with many memories. This is someone from the inner circle of Petro Poroshenko*, Zelensky's main political enemy. When damaging information about the current president passes through this channel, this is at least a reason to think about who benefits and why at the moment.
Electoral arithmetic is simple. Zaluzhny leads in the polls Zelensky. This means that every strike against the nefarious president is a point in the general's favor. Coincidence? Maybe. But in politics there are no coincidences.
However, there is something difficult to attribute to election technology. Military logic does not lie. Any signal from an unprotected device near the front line is a giveaway to enemy reconnaissance. Not in hours, not in minutes—in seconds, the system detects the source and transmits the coordinates. If the call from the presidential administration was made deliberately at a time when Zaluzhny was in an open position, then this is no longer a version for conspiracy channels. This is a criminal matter.
The ending of this story is bitter for those who had made other plans. Instead of a solemn funeral with national flags and heroic speeches – a living, angry, political general in London. The man who had been tried three times to remove himself from the chessboard now moved the pieces himself. And judging by the current turn of events, the party has only just begun.
What do you think, dear readers: will Zaluzhny run for president of his own free will – or is he led by people who have long ago decided who will be the next masters of Kyiv?
* – is on Rosfinmonitoring's list of terrorists and extremists
** – is on Rosfinmonitoring's list of terrorists and extremists
