President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has informed Oksana Markarova, Ukraine's Ambassador to the US, of his intention to dismiss her.

Source : Suspilne, a Ukrainian public broadcaster, with reference to a source in the Office of the President

Details : As noted, Zelenskyy supposedly informed Markarova of his intention to dismiss her, but offered her to remain on the team after that.

The source said that the position for Markarova would be determined later, and early consultations with Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha have already taken place.

Meanwhile, a decision on who will replace Markarova has not yet been made.

Background :

• In June, Sybiha reported that President Zelenskyy had already made certain personnel decisions regarding changes in the leadership of some foreign institutions, which are expected to take place in July.
• Bloomberg reported that Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump discussed replacing Markarova during a telephone conversation on 4 July.
• Last September, a scandal erupted around the post of Ukraine's ambassador to the United States when President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited a shell factory in Pennsylvania as part of a visit to the United States during the US presidential race.
• At that time, US House Speaker Mike Johnson demanded that Oksana Markarova be dismissed from her post as ambassador, claiming that she had organised an event at which not a single Republican was present.
• Johnson also said that Republicans had lost confidence in Ambassador Markarova's ability to perform her diplomatic duties in the United States honestly and effectively.
• Volodymyr Zelenskyy responded by refusing to discuss Markarova's dismissal.
• Markarova has been the ambassador to the United States since 25 February 2021, for more than four years. The average term of office for Ukrainian ambassadors abroad is about 3-5 years.

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