Ukraine names reformer Drapatyi military chief after mass protests
Ukraine has replaced its top general with a reform-minded commander following the largest domestic protests of the war, a move that could determine how effectively the country absorbs Western military aid.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy named Major General Mykhailo Drapatyi, 43, as commander-in-chief of the armed forces late on Tuesday, pushing out General Oleksandr Syrskyi. The abrupt leadership change followed days of nationwide demonstrations triggered by the ouster of former Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov.
For European capitals and defense contractors, the appointment resolves a destabilizing internal clash between Soviet-era military orthodoxy and a new generation of tech-driven warfare. Fedorov had overseen Ukraine's expansion of drone and deep-strike operations, areas where European allies are heavily investing to help Kyiv offset Russia's numerical advantage.
A public revolt against old-school command
The crisis erupted when a cabinet reshuffle cost Fedorov his job. A poll by Gradus Research found over 60 percent of Ukrainians opposed his removal, with nearly half warning it would weaken national defense. Protests spread to more than a dozen cities, drawing thousands who chanted Drapatyi's name and carried signs reading "Removing Fedorov = helping the Russians."
The dispute briefly paralyzed parts of the defense apparatus. Colonel Pavlo Yelizarov, a key figure in Ukraine's air defense against nightly Russian missile barrages, and drone-crowdfunding activist Serhii Sternenko both resigned in protest. Fedorov publicly accused Syrskyi of completely blocking his reforms, stating the general had figured out how to split the country rather than defeat Russia asymmetrically.
A reformer with a candid record
Drapatyi brings a starkly different leadership style to the role. Known to troops as "The Flying BMP" after a viral 2014 video showing him driving an armored vehicle through a Russian roadblock in Mariupol, he has built a reputation for public accountability. "A commander has no right to remain silent about problems, especially when their cost is measured in lost opportunities, time, and human lives," he wrote last week.
His approach will be closely watched by Ukraine's Western partners. As ground forces commander since November 2024, Drapatyi oversaw the 155th Mechanized Brigade—the first unit fully trained and equipped by a Western ally, France. When the brigade suffered mass desertions before deployment, Drapatyi publicly blamed Ukraine's own recruitment and training failures rather than the allied program, pushing for systemic reforms.
Zelenskyy acknowledged Syrskyi's past victories in defending Kyiv and the Kharkiv and Kursk operations, but ultimately sided with public demands for change. Drapatyi signaled his immediate priorities upon his appointment, writing that the military needs change, "but without justice, no change will make sense to the people who carry this war on their shoulders every day."
