“We all have one goal. We must win the war and for that, we must eliminate the current problems of the Ukrainian army: logistics, rotation, and supplies. We, for some reason, have many troops that are very far away from the front. Overstaffed headquarters,” said the official in the presidential office. “Syrskyi will have carte blanche on structural changes, he will have a team of super experienced officers. He will be doing war 24/7.”
One of Syrskyi’s first tasks will be to ensure that the change of leadership doesn’t damage morale already on the ropes as casualties mount, allies waver and Moscow shows no sign of backing down from its effort to conquer Ukraine.
Zaluzhny has been “the glue that’s kept the Ukrainian military together. It would be a hit to morale and take a little while for the successor to settle in and get the same level of kudos with the troops,” said Arnold.
Syrskyi will also have to improve the way the military functions.
The key challenges are improved organization, improved training and improved logistics — which can then be leveraged by improved equipment and weaponry from allies, said Austrian military analyst Tom Cooper.
“With all due respect, and with or without Zaluzhny, these are also the three major problem zones of the Ukrainian army. Even after two years since the all-out invasion, none of these is working well, and improvements observed so far remain relatively minimal,” Cooper added.
