Ukraine's commander-in-chief decentralizes battlefield command, reshuffles senior officers
Ukraine's Commander-in-Chief Mykhailo Drapatyi has begun reshaping how the military is run, giving frontline commanders more autonomy, reorganizing command structures and moving dozens of senior officers into the reserve, Ukrainska Pravda reported after interviewing around 20 officers of different ranks.
Drapatyi, who took over as commander-in-chief in July, has moved away from the centralized management style of his predecessor, Oleksandr Syrskyi, according to Ukrainska Pravda.
Rather than directly managing units or holding hours-long daily briefings with commanders, Drapatyi works through operational commands and focuses on broader strategic and systemic issues. Officers interviewed by the outlet described the shift as giving commanders greater freedom to make decisions on the ground.
The military's command structure has also been reorganized. Six force groupings now operate across the front, including two new ones — Center, commanded by Andriy Biletskyi, and Azov, led by Denys Prokopenko. They are expected to oversee some of the most difficult sectors in Donetsk Oblast, including the Kramatorsk and Dobropillia areas.
Several UP sources said Drapatyi is also considering giving the Joint Forces Command responsibility for managing the entire front, closer to the NATO model. Under such a system, the General Staff would concentrate on strategic planning, reserves and international cooperation, while the Joint Forces Command would oversee combat operations.
Drapatyi has also carried out a broad personnel reshuffle, moving several dozen officers — including colonels and brigadier generals — into the reserve. At the same time, officers previously sidelined under earlier military leadership, including Serhiy Sobko and Emil Ishkulov, have returned to senior positions.
Another priority is expanding the use of Ukraine's Delta battlefield awareness system. UP reported that some force groupings still do not use Delta, while Drapatyi is pushing commanders to adopt it and other digital tools in day-to-day operations.
Separately, two senior sources told UP that Drapatyi's team has drafted what the outlet describes as a "war plan," which has been under consideration by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council for several weeks.
According to the sources, the document is intended to set out what the Ukrainian military must accomplish to preserve the country and on what timeline, while also addressing practical questions about how Ukraine should organize its defenses. The document itself has not been made public.