Zelenskyy took over as head of Ukraine’s armed forces amid calls from protesters to do so
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday fired General Oleksandr Syrskyi as commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, following days of mass protests in Kyiv, the capital, and other cities across the country demanding his removal.
Zelenskyy appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new army chief, according to a statement on social media.
“Our shared desire is to defeat the enemy and the conditions on the front and the pressure on Russia that will force Russia to be peaceful,” Zelenskyy said.
It was the second major change Zelenskyy has been forced to make, after protests last summer forced him to reverse a law that weakened Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdog.
The Ukrainian leader said he took the decision after a series of meetings with military commanders. They began shortly after protests broke out demanding the reinstatement of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, seen by protesters as a modernist military leader, and the removal of Syrskyi, who they say embodies the old Soviet-style command of the military.
Zelenskyy thanks the outgoing army chief
Zelenskyy thanked Syrskyi for his success in the Ukrainian-Russian war and praised him for the defense of Kyiv and the operations in Kharkiv and Kursk.
“I thank Oleksandr Syrskyi and all our heroes for the strong positions of Ukraine,” he said. “I thank Mykhailo Drapatyi for having the same idea.”
Drapatyi wrote in a Facebook post that serving Ukraine “has always been an honor for me, and during this war for independence, it means a complete responsibility.” He thanked Syrskyyi for his consistent work in strengthening the Ukrainian military.
“I grew up in it,” he added referring to the army. “I will work responsibly, focus and honor the people who protect our country today.”
On Tuesday, Zelenskyy met separately with Fedorov and offered him what he called a prestigious position in the government that would unite the country’s technology sector. It was unclear whether Fedorov would accept the offer, or whether the latest move would satisfy the protesters.
Approval of Fedorov’s voice
Fedorov congratulated Drapatyi, calling the appointment “new hope in the free people’s fight for freedom and justice” and “a voice of change that cannot be heard.”
Fedorov publicly criticized Syrskyyi before his dismissal, saying the general was blocking his reform efforts and needed to be replaced so that Ukraine would not fail in its resistance to Russia. He said that the expectations of the Ukrainian people must now be met with a clear vision of ending the war, a decisive step to save the lives of the soldiers, increase the robot war on the front, strike equally and destroy the Russian economy.
Fedorov called Syrskyi to thank him for the defense of the Kyiv region, the operation of Kharkiv and other battles, calling it “an important part of the history of Ukraine” but adding that the country should “move quickly and write new chapters, correct all the mistakes of the past.”
Ukraine has been in a state of perpetual war with Russia for more than four years, after Moscow launched an all-out attack on its neighbor in February 2022.
Syrskyi had assumed the post of commander-in-chief of the army in February 2024, replacing General Valerii Zaluzhnyi, who became Ukraine’s Ambassador to the United Kingdom.
