Ukraine updates: Ousted minister Fedorov calls for elections

Key Points:

• Former Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for wartime elections in Ukraine, challenging President Volodymyr Zelenskyy amid the ongoing Russian invasion and criticizing systemic governance issues and corruption.
• Ukrainian lawmakers approved Yevgeniy Khmara as the new defense minister with a vote of 312-2; Khmara is known for his experience in Ukraine's national security agency and technological combat operations.
• President Zelenskyy dismissed deputy head of the presidential office, Iryna Mudra, amid an anti-corruption investigation involving senior officials suspected of laundering $3.35 million linked to an energy corruption scheme.
• Ukraine and Russia conducted a prisoner swap exchanging 103 prisoners each, continuing a rare area of cooperation despite the ongoing conflict.
• Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the rebuilding of warehouses damaged by Ukrainian drone attacks, labeling the strikes as "terrorist attacks" but downplaying their critical impact on Russia's economy and infrastructure.