{"id":87589,"date":"2026-07-18T21:27:33","date_gmt":"2026-07-18T19:27:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/?p=87589"},"modified":"2026-07-18T21:31:24","modified_gmt":"2026-07-18T19:31:24","slug":"speculation-grows-over-syrskyis-future-who-could-replace-him","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/news\/speculation-grows-over-syrskyis-future-who-could-replace-him\/","title":{"rendered":"Speculation Grows Over Syrskyi&#8217;s Future: Who Could Replace Him?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>President Volodymyr Zelenskyy&#8217;s announcement of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov&#8217;s resignation, coupled with the minister&#8217;s remarks that meaningful military reforms could not be implemented under the current Commander-in-Chief, General Oleksandr Syrskyi, has reignited speculation over a possible change in Ukraine&#8217;s military leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More recently, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/1b34caa6-d909-4df8-a90f-b928f2199261?syn-25a6b1a6=1\">\"\u0423 \u043d\u0430\u0441 \u0442\u0443\u0442 \u0454 <em>Financial Times<\/em><\/a>, citing sources familiar with the matter, reported that Zelenskyy is prepared to dismiss Syrskyi if he can identify a successor capable of ensuring a smooth transition of command while maintaining Ukraine&#8217;s defenses along the more than 1,200-kilometer front line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In an apparent effort to ease tensions within the Assault Forces\u2014whose units are referred as &#8220;Syrskyi&#8217;s pocket units&#8221;\u2014the president announced the creation of the Joint Rapid Reaction Forces, a new formation intended to reorganize the assault component of the Armed Forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-militaryland-net wp-block-embed-militaryland-net\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"96MLaN6fQ5\"><a href=\"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/news\/zelenskyy-announces-reform-of-ukraines-assault-troops\/\">Zelenskyy Announces Reform of Ukraine&#8217;s Assault Troops<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cZelenskyy Announces Reform of Ukraine\u2019s Assault Troops\u201d \u2014 MilitaryLand.net\" src=\"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/news\/zelenskyy-announces-reform-of-ukraines-assault-troops\/embed\/#?secret=XFFPp3UseC#?secret=96MLaN6fQ5\" data-secret=\"96MLaN6fQ5\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>However, the subsequent reshuffle of the government and Fedorov&#8217;s departure prompted demonstrations in Kyiv and several other cities, with protesters calling for Syrskyi&#8217;s dismissal. The developments have fueled debate over whether the commander-in-chief should be replaced and, if so, who could realistically succeed him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who Could Replace Syrskyi?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Replacing the commander-in-chief is not as simple as appointing a successful brigade commander. Leading a brigade requires tactical expertise, while commanding the entire Armed Forces demands strategic planning, operational experience, and the ability to coordinate multiple branches of the military.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Under Ukraine&#8217;s command structure, the commander-in-chief is expected to have progressed through every level of command\u2014from tactical and operational leadership to operational-strategic commands such as Operational-Strategic Groups of Forces &#8220;Khortytsia,&#8221; &#8220;Tavria,&#8221; or &#8220;Dnipro.&#8221; Experience at the corps level alone is generally considered insufficient for the country&#8217;s highest military post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-militaryland-net wp-block-embed-militaryland-net\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"WeFviCOVaV\"><a href=\"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/article\/opinion-syrskyi-needs-to-resign\/\">\u0414\u0443\u043c\u043a\u0430: \u0421\u0438\u0440\u0441\u044c\u043a\u0438\u0439 \u043c\u0430\u0454 \u043f\u0456\u0442\u0438 \u0443 \u0432\u0456\u0434\u0441\u0442\u0430\u0432\u043a\u0443<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cOpinion: Syrskyi Needs to Resign\u201d \u2014 MilitaryLand.net\" src=\"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/article\/opinion-syrskyi-needs-to-resign\/embed\/#?secret=U0YXQ0633f#?secret=WeFviCOVaV\" data-secret=\"WeFviCOVaV\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>These requirements reflect reforms introduced after Russia&#8217;s 2014 annexation of Crimea, when Ukraine began restructuring its military along NATO standards. Legislation adopted in 2020 further separated the responsibilities of the Commander-in-Chief and the Chief of the General Staff, moving away from the Soviet command model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Armed Forces have since adopted the NATO-style J-staff structure and the Military Decision-Making Process (MDMP). As a result, the commander-in-chief must possess not only battlefield experience but also expertise in strategic planning, force integration, joint operations, and cooperation with international partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Potential Candidates<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Several senior Ukrainian generals possess the operational and strategic experience required for the position. Among those frequently mentioned are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Andriy Hnatov, Chief of the General Staff, with extensive experience in strategic planning.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ihor Skibiuk, Deputy Chief of the General Staff and former commander of the Air Assault Forces.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Mykhailo Drapatyi, Commander of the Joint Forces, who previously led the Ground Forces and operational-strategic groups &#8220;Khortytsia&#8221; and &#8220;Dnipro.&#8221;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Oleh Apostol, Commander of the Air Assault Forces and former Deputy Commander-in-Chief.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Hennadiy Shapovalov, Commander of the Ground Forces with extensive headquarters and operational command experience.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Viktor Nikolyuk, commander responsible for operations in the Donetsk sector under Operational Task Force East.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Oleksandr Tarnavskyi, former commander of the Operational-Strategic Group of Forces &#8220;Tavria,&#8221; now commander of 9th Army Corps.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>President Volodymyr Zelenskyy&#8217;s announcement of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov&#8217;s resignation, coupled with the minister&#8217;s remarks that meaningful military reforms could not be implemented under the current Commander-in-Chief, General Oleksandr Syrskyi,&#8230;<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":84853,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[3,1184],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-87589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-people"],"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":3,"label":"News"},{"value":1184,"label":"People"}]},"featured_image_src_large":["https:\/\/militaryland.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/news_sirskyi_26-1024x536.webp",1024,536,true],"author_info":{"display_name":"Jerome Rendall","author_link":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/author\/ml_admin\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":3,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":3,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":1076,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":3,"category_count":1076,"category_description":"","cat_name":"News","category_nicename":"news","category_parent":0},{"term_id":1184,"name":"People","slug":"people","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":1184,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":16,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":1184,"category_count":16,"category_description":"","cat_name":"People","category_nicename":"people","category_parent":0}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87589","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87589"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87589\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87601,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87589\/revisions\/87601"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87589"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87589"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/militaryland.net\/ua\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87589"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}