Lieutenant General Mykhailo Drapatyi has submitted his resignation as Commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. He announced the decision in a statement on Telegram, citing personal responsibility for the recent deadly incident at the 239th training ground.
“This is a conscious step driven by my own sense of responsibility for the tragedy… As a commander, I failed to fully ensure the execution of my orders. I didn’t press hard enough, didn’t convince enough, didn’t change the attitude toward the soldier in formation,” Drapatyi wrote.
He stressed that although he had tried to root out impunity and complicity within the ranks, the recurrence of such tragedies proved those efforts were insufficient.
“Commanders must bear personal responsibility for the lives of soldiers,” he said. “An army where no one is held accountable for losses dies from within.”
Drapatyi said he had initiated a full investigation into the circumstances of the tragedy, including the actions of commanders, the condition of shelters, and the effectiveness of alert systems. However, he admitted that no inquiry could bring back those who were lost.
Twelve servicemen were killed and several others wounded in a Russian strike on the training ground. Most of the victims were young soldiers from a training battalion.