Gen. Mykhailo Drapatyi, the new commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces

Tuesday’s Coverage: Protesters to Zelensky — Reinstate Defense Minister Fedorov by Friday

UPDATE 1420 GMT:

At least 11 civilians have been murdered and 54 injured by Russian attacks across Ukraine over the past day.

Air defenses downed 204 of 216 drones and three of four missiles.

UPDATE 1408 GMT:

Ukraine struck another 13 Russian vessels in the Sea of Azov and Black Sea overnight, most of them bulk carriers.

Since July 6, Ukraine has hit 126 ships in the Sea of Azov and 70 in the Black Sea as it tries to cut off Russian-occupied Crimea.

UPDATE 0613 GMT:

Ukraine has struck warehouses of the Russian online retailer Wildberries for the third time within a week.

Logistics hubs are burning in Krasnodar and in Nevinnomyssk in Stavropol Krai in southwest Russia.

Two major Wildberries logistics hubs are burning after the overnight drone attack on Russia.

One fire is in Krasnodar. The other is in Nevinnomyssk, Stavropol Krai.

Wildberries is Russia’s Amazon-style e-commerce giant, with massive logistics hubs across the country.

Krasnodar

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— Special Kherson Cat (@specialkhersoncat.bsky.social) July 22, 2026 at 6:23 AM

ORIGINAL ENTRY: Under intense public pressure, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has announced the replacement of commander-in-chief Gen. Oleksandr Syrskyi.

Zelensky named Joint Forces chief Mykhailo Drapatyi as the new head of the military. He also removed Syrskyi’s ally Gen. Andrii Hnatov, the head of the General Staff.

Syrskyi’s dismissal came six days after Zelensky fired Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who had been in a dispute with Syrskyi over technology, manpower, and resources.

Thousands of protesters gathered daily in the center of Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine. On Monday, the demonstrations were suspended with a Friday deadline for Zelensky to act.

Zelensky said he offered Fedorov a new position but did not say whether he had accepted.

The President said he met Drapatyi, 43, twice over the past two days as well as conferring with other senior commanders. He said his decision was made in a meeting with acting Defense Minister Yevhen Khmara and the Deputy Head of the Presidential Office Pavlo Palisa.

“We all have one desire — victory over the enemy and the achievement of such conditions at the front and under pressure on Russia that would allow us to force Russia to peace,” Zelenskyy said. He paid tribute to Syrsky, who had “ensured Ukraine’s results in the defense of Kyiv” and major operations into Russia.

Drapatyi is a supporter of Fedorov. He said he saw a genuine effort to change rules that have long governed the military, addressing the issues that “the system has grown accustomed to ignoring”.

A commander has no right to remain silent about problems, especially when their cost is measured in lost opportunities, time, and human lives. Silence does not protect the army; it only allows mistakes to accumulate until they become much more difficult to correct.

Under Drapayti’s command, the newly-created Joint Forces pushed back Russian forces in the Kharkiv region in northeast Ukraine. Previously, he led the Dnipro operational-strategic group, which oversaw the eastern frontlines until Syrskyi disbanded it in October 2025.

Fedorov posted in response to Drapayti’s appointment:

This is a breath of fresh air and new hope in the struggle….It is the voice of change that could not go unheard.

Now the high expectations of the Ukrainian people must be met with a clear vision for bringing the war of independence to an end, a strong team, and decisive actions aimed at preserving the lives of our soldiers, robotizing the front line, delivering asymmetric strikes, and exhausting the Russian economy.