Syrskyi dismisses two corps commanders
Oleksandr Syrskyi (Photo: https://www.facebook.com/CinCAFofUkraine)
Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi has relieved the commanders of the 17th and 20th corps, Volodymyr Silenko and Maksym Kituhin, public broadcaster Suspilne reported on Sept. 15.
The General Staff said the decision followed “failures by the two commanders in the management of troops.” Ineffective leadership in their sectors led to personnel losses and the loss of territory in Zaporizhzhya Oblast, the statement said.
The dismissed officers will continue to serve in other positions, the General Staff added.
Earlier, Ukrainska Pravda, citing sources, reported that Syrskyi removed Silenko and Kituhin from command one to two weeks ago. Those sources linked the dismissals to recent retreats within each corps’ area of responsibility.
According to Ukrainska Pravda, the 17th Corps, under Silenko’s command, is deployed in Zaporizhzhya Oblast. Ukrainian forces recently lost the village of Kamianske and part of the riverside village of Plavni there. The 20th Corps, led by Kituhin, holds the line on the Donetsk–Dnipropetrovsk oblasts border, where Russian troops have managed to penetrate Dnipropetrovsk Oblast.
The shake-up marks the first personnel changes since the Ukrainian Armed Forces transitioned to a corps-based command system.
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