Mykhailo Drapatyi: Can new Ukraine army chief alter Russia war’s direction?

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports from Kyiv that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed 43-year-old Colonel Mykhailo Drapatyi as Ukraine’s top military commander, putting him in charge of the General Staff as the war with Russia continues. The appointment, reported on July 24, follows Drapatyi’s rise from battlefield commander to head of Ukraine’s land forces and joint forces.

Drapatyi first became widely known in Ukraine in May 2014, when he drove an armoured vehicle through a separatist barricade in Mariupol during fighting involving pro-Russian forces. Al Jazeera says he later led a unit out of encirclement by Russia-backed separatists with minimal losses. In 2022, he was involved in efforts to stop Russia’s advance toward Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s hometown.

The move replaces Oleksandr Syrskii, who was credited with helping defend Kyiv in 2022 and with later Ukrainian operations in Kharkiv and Kursk, but who was also criticised by some soldiers over casualties. Former deputy General Staff chief Ihor Romanenko told Al Jazeera that Drapatyi is trusted by those who served with him and is seen as more attentive to soldiers and more aligned with Western military methods than Soviet-style approaches.

Al Jazeera notes that the personnel change comes amid wider tensions in Ukraine’s defence leadership, including the recent dismissal of Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, which sparked protests. Analysts quoted by the outlet said Drapatyi’s appointment may ease some pressure but will not by itself resolve structural disputes between the Defence Ministry and General Staff, or determine the war’s course without changes in mobilisation, technology and Russia’s battlefield decisions.