KYIV, Ukraine – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed Maj. Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi as commander-in-chief of the country’s armed forces on Tuesday, selecting a veteran battlefield commander whose military career has been shaped by more than a decade of fighting against Russia.
Drapatyi succeeds Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi, who was dismissed after days of demonstrations in Kyiv and other cities calling for changes in Ukraine’s military leadership. Protesters demanded Syrskyi’s removal and the reinstatement of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, arguing that the armed forces required faster modernization and a departure from what they described as Soviet-era command practices.
In a message posted on Facebook, Drapatyi thanked Syrskyi for his service and pledged to lead with responsibility and respect for those defending Ukraine.
“I grew up in it,” Drapatyi said of the armed forces. “I will work responsibly, with focus and with respect for the people defending our state today.”
Combat Experience Shaped His Military Career
At 43, Drapatyi belongs to a generation of Ukrainian commanders whose careers have been defined by the conflict that began with Russia in 2014.
He has spent nearly his entire military career in operational assignments and most recently commanded Ukraine’s Joint Forces, which oversee day-to-day combat operations across multiple branches of the military.
Within the armed forces, Drapatyi has earned a reputation for discipline and operational effectiveness, frequently being assigned to stabilize some of the most challenging sectors of the front. Although he has maintained a relatively low public profile, he is widely respected among military personnel for his leadership in combat.
Mariupol Operation Established His Reputation
Drapatyi first gained national attention in May 2014 during the early stages of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
As a major commanding a battalion of the 72nd Brigade, he led an armored convoy into central Mariupol to rescue police officers and territorial defense personnel surrounded by pro-Russian militants who had threatened to kill them.
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When the convoy encountered a barricade more than one meter (3.3 feet) high, Drapatyi ordered the lead armored vehicle to drive through the obstacle. The dramatic maneuver, captured on video and widely circulated, became one of the defining moments of Ukraine’s early resistance against Russian-backed forces.
Later that year, Drapatyi’s battalion was surrounded for weeks near the Russian border. Rather than surrender, he led approximately 260 soldiers and more than 30 military vehicles through enemy positions during a nighttime breakout.
Leadership Expanded During the Full-Scale War
Over the following decade, Drapatyi advanced through a series of frontline commands, leading brigades in eastern Ukraine before becoming deputy commander of the Joint Forces when Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.
In 2024, he commanded forces that halted Russia’s advance toward Zelenskyy’s hometown of Kryvyi Rih and later helped push Russian troops back from parts of the Kherson region. He also organized defenses that blunted a renewed Russian offensive in the Kharkiv region during the same year.
Those battlefield successes led Zelenskyy to appoint him commander of Ukraine’s Ground Forces later in 2024.
Reform Debate Shaped Leadership Change
Drapatyi later resigned as Ground Forces commander after a Russian strike killed numerous Ukrainian soldiers at a military training center. Accepting responsibility, he said he had failed to ensure his directives were fully implemented and argued that efforts to reform the branch had been obstructed by officials resistant to greater accountability.
Zelenskyy subsequently appointed him commander of the Joint Forces.
The debate over military reform intensified last week after former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov alleged that senior military leaders had resisted modernization efforts and pressured commanders advocating institutional change, including Drapatyi.
Responding on social media, Drapatyi expressed support for the Defense Ministry’s leadership and agreed that many reforms had advanced “despite the system, rather than thanks to how it worked.” He added that a commander’s silence “has never been a form of responsibility.”
Veteran Officer Takes Command During Wartime
Born in 1982 in Kamianets-Podilskyi in Ukraine’s Khmelnytskyi region, Drapatyi comes from a family of teachers. He graduated from the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Troops in 2004 before joining the 72nd Separate Mechanized Brigade in Bila Tserkva, which at the time was commanded by Syrskyi.
As Ukraine’s new commander-in-chief, Drapatyi assumes command of the armed forces at a critical stage of the war, with military leaders facing continued pressure to sustain battlefield operations while advancing reforms aimed at strengthening the country’s long-term defense capabilities.
This report is based on reporting by The Associated Press.
Article Topics: Ukraine | Mykhailo Drapatyi | Volodymyr Zelenskyy | Armed Forces | Military Leadership | Russia-Ukraine War | Defense Reform | Europe
