Ukraine’s Ground Forces commander, Maj. Gen. Mykhailo Drapaty, has been appointed to lead Ukraine’s Joint Forces after offering to resign following a deadly Russian missile strike on a military training ground.
The strike on June 1 killed 12 Ukrainian soldiers and injured more than 60 at the 239th training center. Drapatyi had submitted his resignation the same day, saying he took full responsibility for the incident.
JOIN US ON TELEGRAM
Follow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.
“I was unable to make people follow my orders,” Drapaty wrote in a Facebook post. “I didn’t push hard enough or change attitudes toward discipline. This is my responsibility.”
He added that without personal accountability, the military cannot grow or succeed.
After meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Drapaty said he was asked to stay in service and was assigned a new role.
“The president listened, supported me, and urged me to focus on the war, the front and victory,” Drapaty wrote on Telegram. “I remain in service, on the front line, where I belong and can contribute most.”
In his nightly address, Zelensky confirmed Drapaty will now command the Joint Forces and will focus entirely on combat operations.
Drapaty wrote that the army culture would need to be changed to place an increased value on the lives of Ukrainian soldiers.
Drapaty was appointed commander of Ukraine’s Ground Forces in Nov. 2024 by Commander in Chief Oleksandr Syrsky as part of a “new generation” of younger Ukrainian general officers. Drapatyi has a long and notable military career and helped to liberate Mariupol in May 2014 as the commander of the 2nd Battalion of the 72nd Mechanized Brigade.
Poland Calls Zelensky's National Pantheon Plan an ‘Escalation’
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
You can also highlight the text and press Ctrl + Enter
