Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi and appointed Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new head of the armed forces. The major military shake-up follows a week of mounting political crisis and nationwide street protests triggered by Zelenskyy’s recent firing of popular, tech-focused Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
In a late-night television address, Zelenskyy announced that General Drapatyi, a respected, modernizing commander and known ally of Fedorov, will take charge of reorganizing the army’s command structure, updating defense strategy, and continuing Ukraine’s precision long-range drone strikes inside Russia.
Simultaneously, Zelenskyy revealed he met with Fedorov on Tuesday to offer him a “prominent position” within the government aimed at leading and unifying the state’s technology and drone warfare sector.
The leadership overhaul comes after thousands of demonstrators gathered in Kyiv and other major cities, giving the administration a deadline to remove Syrskyi and restore Fedorov’s modernizing influence. Fedorov welcomed Drapatyi’s appointment as a “breath of fresh air and new hope,” while Zelenskyy commended the outgoing Syrskyi for his historic roles in the defense of Kyiv and the 2024 Kursk offensive, promising a coordinated and orderly transition at the front lines.
