File : Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrsky in Kharkiv. © Handout via AFP
President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday dismissed Ukraine’s military head Oleksandr Syrsky following days of public pressure and named Major General Mykhailo Drapaty, an ally of ousted defense minister Mykhailo Fedorov, as the new commander-in-chief.
Kyiv- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that he was dismissing Oleksandr Syrsky, commander-in-chief of Ukraine‘s army, amid an ongoing political crisis triggered by the removal of a popular defence minister.
The Ukrainian leader announced he was appointing joint forces commander Mykhailo Drapaty in his place
“This is a victory for the protesters who took to the streets a week ago, when Zelensky fired defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov,” FRANCE 24 correspondent Gulliver Cragg said. “Their main demand was that Syrsky be fired.”
He added that “Drapaty was the one Fedorov wanted to see in that position to replace Syrsky”.
Syrsky, 60, had served in the role since 2024 and was among Kyiv‘s most experienced commanders, having led the defence of Kyiv at the start of Russia‘s full-scale invasion in 2022.
His removal comes after days of protests in support of Fedorov, who accused Syrsky of forcing him out and stalling his attempt to reform the military.
“I have decided that the new Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be Mykhailo Drapaty,” Zelensky said in a post on Telegram.
“I am grateful to Oleksandr Syrsky and to each of our warriors for Ukraine’s strong front-line positions.”
Zelensky also said that he had offered Fedorov – whose surprise dismissal sparked a political crisis – a “decent post” to oversee the technological component of the state.
Former defence minister Fedorov said Syrsky’s replacement was a “breath of fresh air” and a “new hope in the struggle of free people for freedom and justice” in a post on social media.
Questions over Syrsky’s future came to the fore last week, when Zelensky removed the highly popular defence ministe just six months after appointing him.
Fedorov, a tech-savvy 35-year-old whose efforts to modernise the army brought him into conflict with its leadership, accused Syrsky of blocking his ideas and pressuring Zelensky to remove him – a charge Syrsky denied.
Ukrainian media had long reported frictions between the two.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, Reuters)
