Zaluzhny heads trust ratings in Ukraine amid spat with Zelensky

TASS · 🇺🇦 public Ukraine · Aug 08, 2026 · 219 words

Ukrainian Political Instability Internal Power Struggles NATO Skepticism

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What to know about Ukrainian Political Instability

The article reports on a poll by the sociological group Rating indicating that Valery Zaluzhny is currently the most trusted figure among Ukrainians, surpassing President Volodymyr Zelensky. It further discusses the political rivalry between Zaluzhny and Zelensky, as well as recent comments made by Zaluzhny regarding NATO and Russia's military capacity.

Propaganda risk 30%

Claims checked 8

Techniques found 3

Topics 3

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center100%

Right0%

1 source compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom and former commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, overtook Vladimir Zelensky in the rating of trust among Ukrainians, conducted by the Ukrainian sociological group Rating.

Why it matters

Zaluzhny leads the rating with 68%, followed by Zelensky’s chief of staff Kirill Budanov with 62%.

Common ground

Zaluzhny has long been viewed as Zelensky’s main political rival during the future elections, which is broadly seen as the most likely explanation for his dismissal and subsequent appointment to the post in London.

Perspective signals

The tension in the story is sharpened by Loaded Language, Causal Oversimplification, Doubt: language that can make the dispute feel more urgent, personal, or adversarial than the underlying facts alone.

Follow-up questions

What new context would change how readers understand this Ukrainian Political Instability story?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Zaluzhny leads the rating with 68%, followed by Zelensky’s chief of staff Kirill Budanov with 62%. Zelensky is third?
How does this story connect Ukrainian Political Instability with Internal Power Struggles over the next few days?

open_in_new Read the original article: https://tass.com/world/2170421

analyticsAnalysis

30%

Propaganda Score

confidence: 90%

Minor concerns. Some persuasive language detected, but largely factual.

psychologyPropaganda Techniques Detected

eFinder identified 3 propaganda techniques in this article. These signals explain how wording, emphasis, or missing context can shape a reader's interpretation.

warning

Loaded Language 80% confidence

Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.

Found in this article: eFinder flagged this technique because the story's framing or source language may guide readers toward a particular interpretation. Review the claim checks and evidence below to separate what is directly supported from what is implied by wording or emphasis.

Why it matters: Recognizing loaded language helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Causal Oversimplification 70% confidence

Assuming a single cause for a complex issue.

Why it matters: Recognizing causal oversimplification helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

warning

Doubt 60% confidence

Questioning the credibility of a source or claim without providing evidence.

Why it matters: Recognizing doubt helps readers compare the article's framing with the underlying facts and with coverage from other sources.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 8 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 4

info Single Source 2

verified Verified 1

verified Verified By Reference 1

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Claim 1: “Zaluzhny leads the rating with 68%, followed by Zelensky’s chief of staff Kirill Budanov with 62%. Zelensky is third.”

CORROBORATED

Two separate web sources confirm the specific ranking and percentages: Zaluzhny at 68%, Budanov at 62%, and Zelensky trailing them.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volodymyr_Zelenskyy

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web search NEUTRAL — Both Zaluzhny and Budanov enjoyed significant public support and had polled close to or ahead of Zelensky.A July survey by the Rating Group indicated that Zelensky’s approval rating (59%) trailed thos…
https://rtrunews.com/russia/644385-ukraine-fedorov-calls-ele…

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web search NEUTRAL — Adapting to the physical aspects of the Premier League might require some time, but his 71.2% aerial success rate in MLS was reasonably high, enough to rank 15th among the same group of defenders.
https://theanalyst.com/articles/premier-league-transfers-new…

+ 1 more evidence source

verified

Claim 2: “Budanov previously headed Ukraine’s Main Directorate of Intelligence”

VERIFIED

Web search results explicitly identify Kyrylo Budanov as the military intelligence chief (head of the Main Directorate of Intelligence).

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Many notable Ukrainians, Russians and other nationals died during the Russo-Ukrainian war since the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, either while serving in the armed forces or as civilian casualties…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_deaths_during_the_Russ…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Russo-Ukrainian war began in February 2014 and is ongoing. Following Ukraine's Revolution of Dignity, Russia occupied Crimea and annexed it from Ukraine. It then supported Russian separatist armed…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russo-Ukrainian_war

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the existing war between the two countries that began when Ru…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russo-Ukrainian_war_(2022–pres…

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 3: “The phone interview was conducted among 1,000 responders from the Kiev-controlled part of Ukraine on August 5-6.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The provided evidence for this claim consists of generic search results about phone tracking and unrelated polls; no specific evidence confirms the methodology or dates (August 5-6) of the Rating group poll.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the north; Poland and Slova…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukraine

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Vasyl Mykhailovych Ivanchuk (Ukrainian: Василь Михайлович Іванчук; born March 18, 1969) is a Ukrainian chess grandmaster. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1988. A leading chess playe…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasyl_Ivanchuk

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+ 3 more evidence sources

info

Claim 4: “The margin of error is estimated to be below 3.1%.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence provided consists of dictionary definitions of 'margin' and 'margin calculators', with no mention of the specific margin of error for the Rating group poll.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Margin account A margin account is a loan account with a broker which can be used for share trading. The funds available under the margin loan are determined by the broker based on the securities owne…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margin_(finance)

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web search NEUTRAL — Margin squeeze is a pricing strategy implemented by vertically integrated companies who are the dominant provider of an input. [11] It is used to narrow the margin between the wholesale price of the i…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margin_(economics)

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web search NEUTRAL — Use the online margin calculator to find out the sale price, the cost or the margin percentage itself.
https://www.omnicalculator.com/finance/margin

info

Claim 5: “On August 3, Zaluzhny dismissed rumors of Ukraine's potential NATO accession as a "fairy tale," criticized the alliance, and acknowledged that it would take Kiev a very long time to reach Russia's level in military-industrial capacity.”

SINGLE SOURCE

The evidence provided for this claim consists of general Wikipedia entries about the month of August and does not contain any information regarding statements made by Zaluzhny on August 3.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — In the Southern Hemisphere, August is the seasonal equivalent of February in the Northern Hemisphere. In the Northern Hemisphere, August falls in summer. In the Southern Hemisphere, the month falls du…
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/August

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web search NEUTRAL — August is after July and before September. August, in either hemisphere, is the seasonal equivalent of February in the other. In the Northern hemisphere it is a summer month and it is a winter month i…
https://simple.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/August

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web search NEUTRAL — Jul 30, 2026 · Do you know whom August is named after, what August babies are called, and the holidays this month? Are you a fan of this harvest month, which brings the bounty of the season, or do you…
https://www.almanac.com/content/month-august-holidays-fun-fa…

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Claim 6: “Valery Zaluzhny, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United Kingdom and former commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces, overtook Vladimir Zelensky in the rating of trust among Ukrainians, conducted by the Ukrainian sociological group Rating.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results confirm a poll by the sociological group Rating showing Valeriy Zaluzhnyi leading trust ratings over Vladimir Zelensky.

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web search NEUTRAL — Valerii Fedorovych Zaluzhnyi[a] (Ukrainian: Валерій Федорович Залужний. ; born 8 July 1973) is a Ukrainian four-star general and diplomat who is currently serving as Ambassador of Ukraine to the Unite…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valerii_Zaluzhnyi

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web search NEUTRAL — According to a poll by the Ukrainian sociological group Rating, 68% of respondents trust the former commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces.Zaluzhny leads the rating with 68%, followed by Zel…
https://tass.com/world/2170421

+ 1 more evidence source

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Claim 7: “Zelensky appointed him [Budanov] as his chief of staff on January 2”

CORROBORATED

Multiple news sources report that President Zelensky appointed Kyrylo Budanov as his new chief of staff on January 2.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 United States–Ukraine–Russia meetings in Abu Dhabi were a series of trilateral talks held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, between delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and Russia i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States–Ukraine–Rus…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 2026 United States–Ukraine–Russia meetings in Geneva were the third round of trilateral talks between delegations from the United States, Ukraine, and Russia. The meetings took place in Geneva on …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_United_States–Ukraine–Rus…

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 8: “On the following day, Zaluzhny was not allowed to attend Zelensky’s meeting with British Secretary of State for Defense Wes Streeting, who had arrived in Kiev.”

CORROBORATED

Web search results confirm that Wes Streeting became UK defense secretary and that Zaluzhnyi was absent from a meeting between Zelenskyy and the new UK defense secretary.

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web search NEUTRAL — Former Health Secretary Wes Streeting became UK defense secretary in the government led by Andy Burnham on July 20. Commenting on his appointment, Streeting said Britain would “stand unwaveringly shou…
https://english.nv.ua/nation/zaluzhnyi-absent-from-zelenskyy…

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web search NEUTRAL — Zaluzhny’s distance from Kyiv, possibly an attempt to sideline his political ambitions even before he voiced any, instead has left him at a safe – if at times personally frustrating – remove from tens…
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/general-valery-zaluzhnys-di…

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web search NEUTRAL — Foreign media reports that Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky intends to dismiss General Valery Zaluzhny from the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine by the end of the week. Jour…
https://baltimorechronicle.com/politics/zaluzhny-could-be-fi…

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.