08/16/2026
The war in Ukraine looks completely different today from the one that began four and a half years ago.
Drones now shape almost everything on the battlefield. Armies are being rebuilt around them. Technology that once took years to develop can now become obsolete in weeks.
One of the people at the centre of that transformation has been Mykhailo Fedorov.
Then, seemingly at the worst possible moment, while Ukraine was carrying out some of its most ambitious technological operations against Russia, political turmoil erupted around the government and Fedorov suddenly found himself at the centre of it.
And, to be completely honest, I found the whole thing incredibly confusing.
There was endless commentary about what had happened, rumours about his relationship with Zelensky, speculation about whether he would leave government entirely, move into private defence, go abroad, or simply disappear from public life.
But very little about the question I actually wanted answered.
What happens next?
So rather than sitting at home trying to guess, I reached out to him and asked if he would sit down with me.
He agreed.
This is his first sit down interview for an international audience since everything happened, and my main aim was simply to understand where things stand now.
Is he staying in Ukraine? Is he still going to be involved in the transformation of Ukraine’s military? What is his relationship with Zelensky now?
And perhaps most importantly, what happens to the relationships he built with some of the most powerful technology figures in the world?
That includes Elon Musk.
Whatever anyone thinks about one private individual having this much influence, Starlink remains enormously important to Ukraine. Keeping terminals functioning, maintaining communication with SpaceX and dealing with issues around access and whitelisting are not abstract technology debates. They can have very real consequences on the battlefield.
One of the most important things Fedorov tells me in this interview is that his channel of communication with Musk is still open.
That matters, particularly after the recent uncertainty surrounding Musk’s relationship with Ukraine’s leadership.
But the other thing I came away understanding is that Fedorov does not appear to be going anywhere.
There had been plenty of speculation about whether he might leave government, take a private defence job, or begin a completely different chapter.
Instead, he explains what he wants to do next, where he believes Ukraine’s defence technology revolution needs to go, and why he still sees himself as part of that mission.
I approached this interview in much the same way I approached my conversation with Robert Brovdi.
When something this complicated happens, I would much rather go and ask the people involved than spend weeks commentating from a distance. I am just one journalist with a camera trying to understand an extraordinary country at an extraordinary moment.
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Liubich Anton DP
Владислав Діденко – operator
Мотрук Мар’ян – engineer
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