Syrskyi reflects on his time as commander-in-chief: I am handing over armed forces on the offensive

Oleksandr Syrskyi, former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, has said he is handing over forces currently on the offensive to the new Commander-in-Chief Mykhailo Drapatyi.

Source: Syrskyi on Facebook

Quote: "And most importantly, this is the condition in which I am handing over the battlefield. Under my command, 700 sq km of our land have been liberated this year. The armed forces that were fighting a difficult defensive campaign two years ago are now on the offensive.

I am handing over to my successor armed forces that are not only holding the line but are on the offensive, with initiative, with structure and with people who know how to strike the enemy. I sincerely hope this offensive will continue. Everything needed for that is already in place."

Details: Syrskyi also listed a number of operations carried out during his tenure, including the Kursk operation.

Quote: "Then came the year that changed the course of this war. We stopped the enemy's offensive in Kharkiv Oblast together. We thwarted its planned offensive in Sumy Oblast. And we carried out the Kursk operation, bringing combat operations onto enemy territory for the first time in this war.

I want this to be clearly recorded: our objective was never to occupy someone else's land. Our objective was to disrupt the enemy's planned offensive against Sumy and Kharkiv, draw away its most combat-capable forces and increase the number of prisoners available for exchanges so that we could bring our people home from captivity. All of these objectives have been achieved."

"Liberating Ukrainian territory, we carried out the successful Dobropillia operation and an offensive operation on the Oleksandrivka front. We continue to hold back the enemy's offensive on the main fronts while conducting offensive operations in selected sectors of the line of contact.

There are some operations we carried out over these years that I still am not authorised to speak about. History will tell their story."

Background:

• On 20 July, Syrskyi apologised to former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov and said he had not realised there was a conflict between them.
• Following six days of protests, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced his decision to dismiss Syrskyi as commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and appoint Mykhailo Drapatyi to replace him.

• The president also said that he had offered Fedorov a "worthy leadership position". According to Ukrainska Pravda, one of the positions Zelenskyy proposed was deputy prime minister for technology.

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