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Drapatyi replaced Syrskyi in his position
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has officially appointed Mykhailo Drapatyi as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, according to the decree on the President’s Office website.
Appointment amid protests
Drapatyi will replace Oleksandr Syrskyi as Commander-in-Chief. Zelenskyy announced the decision in his evening address on July 21, amid protests that have been ongoing in Kyiv for a week.
The protests were caused by the dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov from the position of Defense Minister. As Zelenskyy explained, Fedorov and Syrskyi did not get along and did not communicate without him. People initially took to the streets demanding that the president return Fedorov to his position, and later another demand was added — to dismiss Syrskyi.
For several days, Zelenskyy held meetings with generals and corps commanders, while rumors spread in the media about a casting process and 11 candidates for the position of Commander-in-Chief.
Who is Mykhailo Drapatyi?
Key facts from his biography:
・Age and rank: 43 years old, major general. Born in Kamianets-Podilskyi, graduated from the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Troops in 2004.
・Legendary episode in 2014: Gained wide recognition on May 9, 2014, during the battles for Mariupol, when his BMP-2 broke through a barricade at the exit from the city. Later, he took part in the withdrawal of Ukrainian units from the Izvaryne Encirclement.
・Awards: Full Cavalier of the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytskyi, recipient of the Cross of Military Merit.
Mykhailo Drapatyi is a Ukrainian military figure and major general. He is a recipient of the Cross of Military Merit and a full Cavalier of the Order of Bohdan Khmelnytskyi.
He gained widespread public attention thanks to footage of a heroic breakthrough by Ukrainian troops when, during the battles for Mariupol on May 9, 2014, his BMP-2 drove through a separatist checkpoint.
He served as Commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (2025–2026), commander of the Dnipro operational-strategic troop grouping (2025), Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (2024–2025), commander of the Luhansk tactical troop grouping (September–November 2024), commander of the Kharkiv tactical troop grouping (May–September 2024), deputy chief of the General Staff for military training (February–November 2024), commander of the Kherson operational grouping of troops (2022–2024), and commander of the 58th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade (2016–2019).
