Change of head of Joint Forces after appeal to State Bureau of Investigation of one of Azov commanders. What's going on
On the evening of June 23, the chief of staff and deputy commander of the Azov Brigade Bohdan (Tavr) Krotevych submitted a statement to the State Bureau of Investigation regarding the actions of the combat general, who, according to him, "killed more Ukrainian soldiers than any Russian general".
However, the military did not name this manager. The very next day, the media found out that this was about the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Lieutenant General Yuriy Sodol. And on the evening of June 24, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the dismissal of Sodol from his post. General Andriy Hnatov was appointed in his place.
We explore what has happened in recent days.
Who is Sodol?
Lieutenant General Yuriy Sodol has the title of Hero of Ukraine. Since 2003, he served in the airborne troops, after a few years he was appointed commander of the 25th Airborne Brigade.
Sodol has been at war since 2014, when his brigade spent five months in active battles in the east of the country. In January 2015, the soldier was appointed first deputy commander of the Airborne Assault Forces. In 2018, Sodol was appointed to the position of commander of the Marine Corps, and later received the rank of lieutenant general. Since 2020, he has simultaneously held the position of commander of the Operational-Tactical Grouping "East", where he was also during the full-scale invasion.
In February 2024, after the appointment of Oleksandr Syrskyi as the new commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed Sodol as the commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces. In May, he also became the commander of The Khortytsia grouping is responsible for the eastern direction of the front.the Khortytsia Operational-Strategic Troop Grouping.
Who is Krotevych?
Bohdan (Tavr) Krotevych is from Simferopol. He studied at the Water Transport Academy of Ukraine, and later moved to Kyiv. In 2013, he was a participant in the Revolution of Dignity.
After the start of the war in 2014, he went to the front as a volunteer in Azov. Then he took part in operations in Donetsk Oblast: battles for Shyrokyne, defense of the Svitlodarsk Arc, defense of Maryinka and Krasnohorivka. In 2016, he became a platoon commander.
At the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Krotevych defended Mariupol. After the defense of Azovstal, he spent four months in Russian captivity. He was released on September 21, 2022, during a large-scale prisoner exchange.
What is Sodol accused of?
Krotevych said that "99% of the military hate him for what he does." At the same time, he did not name the general in his post.
This person initiates investigations against commanders who advance and do not lose ground, but he does not initiate official investigations against himself.Bohdan (Tavr) Krotevych, chief of staff of Azov
According to the serviceman, he was forced to resort to media publicity because he understood that this was the only way to change the situation. Before that he tried to solve the situation without taking it public, he added.
Krotevych noted that this is his personal decision, and he will fully bear all possible consequences. The next day, the media reported that this general is Yuriy Sodol, and the SBI is already working on this appeal.
According to Ukrainska Pravda, Krotevych accuses Sodol of exceeding his official powers and incompetent command, which led to the loss of controlled territories. Because of this, one of the commanders of Azov asks to check the commander of the Joint Forces over cooperation with the enemy. Tavr also noted that he is ready to testify in the case.
Guilty of the breakthrough to Toretsk?
By the way, on June 21, deputy Mariana Bezuhla, who is known for criticizing the top military leadership, accused Sodol of losing positions since 2014.
Breakthrough to Toretsk. Intelligence warned. A day before a possible breakthrough, Sodol removes a brigade and sets up a unit that already has losses and has reduced combat capability (…) It looks like General Sodol is not just showing criminal negligence, but also intent, working for the enemy.MP Mariana Bezuhla
And in the post already after Krotevych's statement was publicized, the lawmaker added,"With Sodol, we missed the invasion of Kharkiv Oblast, a breakthrough to Pokrovsk, and lost Avdiivka."
Also, according to her, "during the missed breakthrough on Toretsk, the head of the Eastern Front, General Sodol, was drinking in the Oblaka restaurant in Odesa."
By the way, there is another recent scandalo related to Odesa: on June 22, the lieutenant general awarded the badge "For service and victory" to Hennadiy Trukhanov, the mayor of the city, whom activists consider pro-Russian and claim that he has a passport of the aggressor state.
However, a month ago, the marines stood up for Sodol, when social media criticized his appointment as the commander of the Khortytsia troop grouping.
It is surprising when old labels like "butcher" are taken out of the drawer and, without understanding the essence of the issue, they pour mud on a person who has devoted his whole life and all his strength to the cause of protecting Ukraine.from the Marine Corps Facebook page
On the official page of the marines, they wrote that in the spring of 2022, "it was under the leadership of Yuriy Sodol that the advance of Russian forces in the south of Donetsk was stopped, the front was stabilized, and since then the line of contact has been almost unchanged."
The 35th Rear Admiral Mykhailo Ostrohradskyi Separate Marine Infantry Brigade made a similar statement at that time.
From what position was Sodol fired?
In the end, on the evening of June 24, President Zelenskyy dismissed Yuriy Sodol from the position of commander of the Joint Forces. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief's address stated that the decision was made after a meeting with the military leadership — among them were Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi, and Chief of the General Staff Anatoliy Barhylevych.
The head of state removed Yuriy Sodol from the position of the commander of the Joint Forces, but he remains the head of the Khortytsya grouping. Similarly, the resignation does not clarify the situation with Krotevych's statement and the potential investigation by the SBI.
Who is the successor?
Sodol will be replaced by Brigadier General Andriy Hnatov, also a Marine. In 2001, he graduated from the Kharkiv Institute of Tank Troops. As an officer, he served, in particular, in the Crimea. Subsequently, he participated in the formation of new units of marines from the units that left the peninsula after its annexation by Russia. In 2018–2021, he was the commander of the 36th Marine Brigade.
After the full-scale invasion, Hnatov became the deputy commander of the forces of the Operational Command "South" and was one of the leaders of the defense of Mykolaiv, and in June 2022 he received the rank of brigadier general.
In the spring of 2023, the general was the head of the defense of Bakhmut, during which he worked closely with the current Commander-in-Chief Syrskyi. After the appointment of the latter, Hnatov became the commander of the troops of the Operational Command "East".