#CNN: Zelensky set to dismiss Zaluzhnyi this week

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is reportedly set to dismiss Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief Valery Zaluzhnyi following weeks of speculation of a potential rift between the two leaders, CNN reported on Jan. 31 citing unnamed sources.

According to reports, Zaluzhnyi was called to a meeting at the President’s Office on Jan. 30 and told he was being fired.

No official presidential decree has been published and Zaluzhnyi was still officially in the post as of Jan. 31. CNN reports that an official announcement of his dismissal is expected by the end of the week.

Ukrainian media, including the Kyiv Independent, have been trying to confirm the news about Ukraine's top commander's firing. The sources, all speaking on condition of anonymity, have been providing contradicting responses.

A Kyiv Independent source in the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces confirmed earlier this week that Zaluzhnyi was fired. The source wasn't authorized to speak to the press.

Zelensky's spokesman Sergii Nykyforov then told the Kyiv Independent at 7:50 p.m. on Jan. 29 that Zaluzhnyi wasn't dismissed.