UPDATE 1-Ukrainian army chief sets out priorities in article amid uncertainty over his future

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KYIV, Feb 1 (Reuters) – Ukrainian army chief Valeriy Zaluzhnyi called for a “completely new state system of technological rearmament” in an opinion piece published on Thursday after several media outlets reported that he could be dismissed from his post.

General Zaluzhnyi made no mention of a rift with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy or the possibility of him leaving his post in the piece published by CNN. The U.S. outlet said he wrote the piece before “an expected announcement of his dismissal”.

CNN cited a source earlier saying that Zelenskiy was set to announce Zaluzhnyi’s dismissal within a matter of days in what would represent the biggest shakeup of Ukraine’s military during Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Zaluzhnyi said in the article that Ukraine needed to find new ways and capabilities to gain an advantage over Russia as the full-scale war nears its third year.

“The challenge for our armed forces cannot be underestimated. It is to create a completely new state system of technological rearmament,” he wrote.

“Taking everything into account at this moment, we think the creation of such a system could be achieved in five months. Our partners are of the same view.” (Reporting by Tom Balmforth, Valentyn Ogirenko, Yuliia Dysa Editing by Chris Reese and Frances Kerry)

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