Volodymyr Zelensky, Photo: Presidency of Ukraine / Zuma Press / Profimedia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky replaced the commander of the ground forces on Friday, appointing Major General Mihailo Drapatii to this position, while Russian troops continue to conquer territory in eastern Ukraine and the Ukrainian army faces a crisis of forces, writes Agerpres.
“Internal changes” are necessary, Zelenskiy emphasized in the statement announcing that General Mihailo Drapatîi, 42, will take over the command of the ground forces from General Oleksandr Pavliuk, who was appointed to this position in February of this year major changes in the command of the army.
“The main mission is to significantly increase the effectiveness of our army in combat, to ensure the quality training of soldiers and to introduce innovative approaches to the management of the forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” he said President Zelensky.
In May, General Mihailo Drapatîi commanded the front sector in the northeastern region of Kharkiv, where he was able to stop the Russian offensive and stabilize the front.
The head of the army inspected the troops in Donetsk
Zelensky also appointed Colonel Oleg Apostol, until now commander of the 95th Separate Airborne Brigade, to the post of deputy to the commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian army, General Oleksandr Sîrski.
The latter inspected on Friday the troops defending the front sectors of Pokrovsk and Kurahove in Donetsk, two key forward cities of the Ukrainian army towards which Russian troops are advancing. He promised that Ukrainian troops would be reinforced there with new troops and additional weaponry.
Ukraine on Thursday asked its allies to speed up military aid, saying faster delivery of weapons and ammunition needed at the front is more important than recruiting new soldiers, after a senior military official administration of the United States criticized Kiev for not mobilizing enough troops to replace battlefield losses and asked Ukraine to reduce the age of mobilization from 25 to 18 years.
During this time, the Russian army, more numerous and better equipped, continues to advance on the front in eastern Ukraine. In addition, Russian troops are recovering about 40% of the territory lost in the Russian border province of Kursk, where the Ukrainian army launched a surprise offensive in August. One of the objectives of this Ukrainian maneuver was to force Russia to focus more on the expulsion of enemy troops from its territory than on the offensive in eastern Ukraine. But despite the fact that the Russian army transferred tens of thousands of soldiers from the Ukrainian front to Kursk, it managed to maintain its offensive dynamics there.
