🚨 SCOOP‼️: Ukrainian Ambassador to the UK, Gen. Valeriy Zaluzhny, is quietly preparing a run for president – in direct opposition to Zelensky.
A source close to the budding campaign tells me his HQ is already active in London, and recruitment is underway. This isn’t just speculation.
🧵Here's what we know: 1/
2/ Zaluzhny – Ukraine’s former top general, now ambassador to the UK – has “effectively begun” his campaign, the source says.
The timing is no accident: Trump’s peace summits are speeding up the negotiation process, with Zelensky confirming that elections may be coming soon.
His silence is strategic, but the message is clear.
3/ Lt. Gen. Serhiy Nayev has been tapped as Zaluzhny’s new campaign chief – and may already be a source of internal tension.
He’s reportedly suspected of being involved with the 2022 demining orders that left Ukrainian defenses dangerously exposed. If confirmed, it could trigger another shake-up before the campaign even goes public.
4/ None of the generals involved so far has ever run a political campaign before.
The real organizing power is MP Viktoria Syumar – a sitting lawmaker with the European Solidarity party.
She’s been handling the nuts and bolts behind the scenes as deputy head of the campaign.
5/ Zaluzhny’s media operation is led by former BBC Ukraine journalist Oksana Torop, who has covered him closely in the past.
Now she’s shaping the message from the inside – and it’s already casting him as calm, capable, and destined to lead.
6/ International outreach is led by Polina Lysenko – ex-head of Ukraine’s disinfo center, now deputy director at NABU.
That’s the same anti-corruption bureau Zelensky’s party tried to gut… before mass protests forced a reversal.
Lysenko hasn’t officially taken leave yet.
7/ For now, Zaluzhny’s campaign is staying technically unofficial. No launch video. No rallies. Just “PR by other means.”
That includes a veterans’ forum in London next month, backed by the powerful Serhiy Pashynskyi.
8/ Despite past denials, Zaluzhny now appears prepared for a serious presidential run – and polling shows he’s the clear frontrunner to challenge Zelensky.
The timing may shift depending on how negotiations unfold. But the wheels are already turning.
More soon.
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