Colonel General Alexander Syrsky became the new commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). The country’s President Vladimir Zelensky announced this in his statement. telegram channel. In this post, he succeeds Valery Zaluzhny, who has held this post since 2021.
“From today, a new team begins to lead the Armed Forces of Ukraine […] “I appointed Colonel General Syrsky as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine,” Zelensky said in his video message. Decrees regarding dismissals and new appointments are also published on the website of the President of Ukraine.
According to the President of Ukraine, Syrsky has “successful experience in the field of defense and attack” – he led the “Kiev Defense Operation” and commanded the battles in the Kharkov region in the autumn of 2022.
Biography and combat experience of General Syrsky
Alexander Stanislavovich Syrsky was born on July 26, 1965 in the village of Novinki in the Vladimir region. In 1986, he successfully completed his training at the Moscow Higher Combined Arms Command School and then moved to Ukraine. He graduated with honors from the Armed Forces Academy of Ukraine in 1996 and was awarded the gold medal of the National Defense Academy in 2005.
Syrsky began his military career in 1986, serving as commander of a motorized rifle platoon. Since 1993, he led the motorized rifle battalion of the 6th division of the National Guard of Ukraine in Chuguev, after which he was promoted to regimental commander of this division. From 2000 to 2002, he served as chief of staff and first deputy commander of the 72nd separate mechanized division of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in Bila Tserkva, and then headed the division, where he rose to the rank of major general.
In 2007, he was appointed chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Joint Operations Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Between 2011 and 2012, he served as first deputy chief of the Main Directorate of Military Cooperation and Peacekeeping Operations of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
In 2013, he served as First Deputy Chief of the Main Command Center of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and Supervised cooperation with NATOIncluding representing Ukraine in negotiations on bringing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to alliance standards.
After the outbreak of armed conflict in eastern Ukraine in the spring of 2014, the National Security Council of Ukraine (NSDC) announced the launch of the so-called anti-terrorist operation (ATO) in Donbass. Syrsky headed the ATO Headquarters and at the beginning of 2015 became “Chief of the General Staff – the first deputy chief of the anti-terrorist operation in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.” He actively participated in the management of operations near Debaltsevo and Uglegorsk. both settlements are located close to the LPR border — Strategically important settlements where intense military clashes took place in the winter of 2015. Syrsky coordinated the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from Debaltseve while he was in the city during the battles.
To participate in the battles near Debaltsevo, Syrsky was assigned to III. degree Bohdan was awarded the Order of Khmelnitsky and in 2016, by decree of President Petro Poroshenko, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general. In the same year, he became head of the Joint Operations Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, which coordinated the actions of various Ukrainian security forces in Donbass, and in 2017 he was appointed commander of the counter-terrorism operation in eastern Ukraine. It was later renamed “Operation Joint Forces”.
Syrsky during the Northern Military District
After the start of the Russian special operation, Colonel General Syrsky was responsible for organizing the defense of Kiev, for which he was awarded the title of Hero of Ukraine and the Order of the Gold Star on April 5, 2022. In September 2022, he commanded the offensive of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the Kharkov region.
He defended Artemovsk (Bakhmut), which was eventually occupied by Russian troops in the spring of 2023. He was given the nickname due to the significant losses in this operation. “General 200” and “Butcher of Bakhmut”.
After the failure of the counteroffensive in Kherson, his name was frequently mentioned in the media as a possible candidate for the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Also a British newspaper Times Citing his sources, he wrote that Syrsky rejected this position.
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In 2022, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal investigation against Syrsky in accordance with Part 1 of Art. 356 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (use of prohibited means and methods of warfare).
The Ukrainian military leader is accused of obstructing the evacuation of civilians from Mariupol. According to this article, the penalty provides for a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
On May 30, 2023, it was learned that the Ministry of Internal Affairs put Syrsky on the wanted list.
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Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.