Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is considering dismissing Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi. That was reported by the Financial Times, citing sources. According to the newspaper, Zelensky plans in the coming days to meet military commanders and possible candidates for the top post, although no final decision has yet been made.
FT writes that the president is prepared to replace Syrskyi if he finds a commander capable of ensuring a transfer of authority without harming the country’s defense. The publication did not name any potential candidates.
On July 17, Zelensky publicly said he had spoken with several commanders. Officially, he said the talks concerned the situation at the front, supplies for military units, and the use of drones. His statement did not mention any possible personnel changes.
“The protesters now have two main demands: bring Fedorov back and dismiss Syrskyi. Fedorov’s return is already extremely unlikely, but Syrskyi is a different matter,” Meduza quoted a source close to the office of Ukraine’s president as saying.
Discussion of replacing the commander-in-chief began after Mykhailo Fedorov left the post of defense minister. That decision triggered demonstrations in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa, and other cities. Protesters are demanding that Fedorov be returned to the ministry and that Syrskyi be removed. Reuters reported that several thousand people took to the streets in Kyiv, including veterans and active service members.
Against this backdrop, both the president and the former defense minister said openly that the resignation was caused by a conflict between the head of the Defense Ministry and the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. A senior Ukrainian Defense Ministry official also told FT that Syrskyi lacks a convincing plan for victory. In that official’s assessment, his strategy amounts to holding the front as long as possible and mobilizing more people.
Syrskyi has led the armed forces since February 2024, when he replaced Valerii Zaluzhnyi. Before that, he oversaw the defense of Kyiv at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion and later commanded the Ukrainian army’s counteroffensive in the Kharkiv region in the autumn of 2022.