British Defense Minister Ben Wallace to Depart from Politics Amid Controversial Remarks Irking Ukrainian Leadership

British Defense Minister Ben Wallace has announced his plans to leave politics. He will not stand as a member of parliament (MP) in the next UK national election and will leave the government during the next cabinet reshuffle carried out by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Wallace has served as the defense secretary for four years and will step down from his post at the next reshuffle. His comments have reportedly angered the Ukrainian leadership.

Ben Wallace’s comments that angered the Ukrainian leadership were about Ukraine needing to show “gratitude” to the West to keep their support. He also suggested that Kyiv should rein in its disappointment over NATO’s language on joining the alliance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded to Wallace’s comments, saying that Ukraine is grateful for the support it has received and that it cannot take the military support of others for granted. Wallace later tweeted in Ukrainian to clear up his comments, saying that they were “misrepresented”.