Drapaty Has Set His Priorities As Commander-in-Chief Of The Armed Forces Of Ukraine

• 24.07.2026, 21:05

More air defense and less “unnecessary bureaucracy.”

The new commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Major General Mykhailo Drapaty, has identified strengthening air defense and overcoming bureaucracy in the army as his key priorities.

He made these remarks during his introduction to the leadership of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, according to a statement from the General Staff on Friday, July 24.

Mykhailo Drapaty emphasized that achieving results requires “maximum unity.”

He identified his priorities as building up the capabilities of Ukraine’s air defense, developing and scaling up unmanned systems, increasing the lethality of strikes against the enemy, eliminating unnecessary bureaucracy, and—in working with personnel—“an emphasis on competence and humanity.”

On July 24, Acting Minister of Defense Yevhen Khmara introduced the new Commander-in-Chief and Chief of the General Staff — Mykhailo Drapaty and Ihor Skibyuk.

The acting Minister of Defense thanked Drapaty and Skibyuk’s predecessors—General Oleksandr Syrskyi and Lieutenant General Andriy Gnatov—for their work. Syrsky himself reported on Telegram that he had officially transferred his powers as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to Mikhail Drapaty.