Feudal system and internal conflicts: Yuri Kasyanov spoke harshly about personnel changes in the military command
In the fourth year of the full-scale war in Ukraine, another series of important personnel changes took place in the security and defense sector. On June 3, new decrees of Volodymyr Zelenskyi were published on the website of the Office of the President of Ukraine, which changed a number of key figures in the military command. These are, in particular, the heads of the Unmanned Systems Forces, Airborne Assault Forces, Ground Forces and the National Guard.
One of the central decisions was the appointment of Robert Brovdi, known by the nickname “Magyar”, as the new commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces. He replaced General Vadym Sukharevskyi in this position, who, in turn, received a new appointment — he became the deputy commander of the operational command “East”. Ihor Skibyuk was replaced by Oleg Apostol in the Airborne Assault Forces, and Skybyuk was appointed deputy chief of the General Staff. Also, by presidential decree, Mykhailo Drapatoy was dismissed from the position of commander of the Ground Forces and at the same time appointed as commander of the combined forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Another rotation is in the National Guard: Oleksandr Bilous was dismissed from the post of deputy commander.
These appointments caused a lively reaction among the military and experts. Yuriy Kasyanov, officer of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, radio engineer, specialist in aerial reconnaissance and founder of the KB “Matrix-UAV” shared his position, noting that he does not see signs of systemic transformation in personnel changes.
He noted that he is skeptical of any high-profile appointments, since, according to him, if the “system” itself does not change, the results should not be expected. In his opinion, the personality factor itself can be important, but in conditions where the commander does not have the necessary authority, even the brightest leader will not be able to realize his potential.
“I am skeptical of all high-profile appointments, because if the notorious “System” itself does not change, then appointing even Vereshchuk – it will not be worse/better. Yes, of course, the personality factor in history has long been known and is not discussed. But if the brightest personality does not have powers, this bright personality will not be able to realize its potential”, – the expert emphasized.
In this context, Kasyanov mentioned the history of the creation of the Unmanned Systems Forces in the Armed Forces. He recalled that a year and a half ago, the president announced the formation of these forces and appointed Sukharevskiy as their commander in the rank of deputy commander-in-chief. However, the actual implementation of this decision took place very late — the functionality and structure were approved only four months later. At the same time, the scope of real powers of the new commander turned out to be no greater than that of the head of a separate service of the General Staff or a combatant on the line.
According to the military expert, this was facilitated not only by bureaucratic inertia, but also by internal conflicts between different branches of the power sector. Kasyanov noted that internal intrigues, competition and the struggle for control of the flows led to a situation where instead of a single SBS, each unit had its own drone support structures: one in the Ground Forces, another in the Airborne Assault Forces, separate units in the Marine Corps, National Guard, DPSU, GUR and SBU.
Kasyanov emphasized that even the “Drone Line”, an initiative of the top military-political leadership, has become a separate vertical and, in fact, duplicates the functions of the SBS. In this context, he asked the question: what exactly will the updated structure under the leadership of “Magyar” be now? According to the expert, until there is a clear answer to this question, it is impossible to talk about systemic changes.
He characterized the current state of affairs in the field of drones as a “feudal system”, where instead of vertical control there is a group of competing entities, each of which serves its own line of submission. In such conditions, Kasyanov believes, even the most promising appointments lose their effectiveness, because they are nullified by administrative disorganization.
Assessing the general situation, he emphasized that the problem is not in surnames. According to him, without a clear demarcation of functions, centralization of management and elimination of institutional duplication, any initiative – even with the best performers – will be doomed to dispersion and conflict of interests.
Yuriy Kasyanov emphasized that in the current system it is not crucial who is appointed, what matters is what role he is actually allowed to perform.
“Therefore, the question is not in the individual, but in the systemic approach. What will the SBS be now? – the Magyar Brigade, the Line of Drones, or, as was planned at the very beginning, will it still be the main drone organization in the Armed Forces? There is a catastrophic lack of order. The system of feudal divisions, competing barons, quarrels and intrigues can destroy any good initiative and any bright personality” – summarizes the expert.
