Zelensky appoints Svyatoslav Zaits as commander of Ukraine's Ground Forces
President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Svyatoslav Zaits as commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine by decree No. 853/2026, dated September 2. The appointment was issued the same day as decree No. 852/2026 dismissing the previous commander, Hennadii Shapovalov, who had held the post since June 2025.
Key points
- Decree No. 853/2026 appointing Svyatoslav Zaits was issued on September 2, 2026.
- Decree No. 852/2026 of the same date dismissed the previous commander, Hennadii Shapovalov.
- Shapovalov had served as Ground Forces commander since June 2025.
- Zaits took command of the 20th Army Corps in April 2026 and previously served as chief of staff – deputy commander of the 8th Corps of the Air Assault Forces.
- Zaits is from the Air Assault Forces (Desantno-shturmovy viyska).
- On May 8, 2026, Zelensky awarded Zaits the rank of brigadier general.
- In 2014, as commander of a reconnaissance company of the 25th Air Assault Brigade, Zaits organized the withdrawal of roughly a hundred soldiers blocked by Russian forces in occupied Crimea.
Why it matters
The Ground Forces are the largest branch of Ukraine's Armed Forces, so a change at the top reshapes leadership of the main ground combat component during the war. The paired decrees — dismissing Shapovalov and appointing Zaits on the same day — point to a deliberate, pre-planned transition rather than an abrupt change.
What happened
On September 2, 2026, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed decree No. 853/2026 appointing Svyatoslav Zaits as commander of the Ground Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. A second decree, No. 852/2026 issued the same day, dismissed his predecessor Hennadii Shapovalov, who had led the Ground Forces since June 2025. Zaits comes from the Air Assault Forces and most recently commanded the 20th Army Corps, a post he had held since April 2026. Before that he served as chief of staff – deputy commander of the 8th Corps of the Air Assault Forces. Zelensky awarded him the rank of brigadier general on May 8, 2026. His earlier career includes commanding a reconnaissance company of the 25th Air Assault Brigade in 2014, when he led the withdrawal of about a hundred soldiers who had been blocked by Russian forces in Crimea after refusing the occupiers' conditions.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
All supplied sources are Ukrainian media outlets, and they present the change as a routine presidential personnel decision made by decree. Coverage emphasizes Zaits' biography — his Air Assault Forces background, his 2014 Crimea withdrawal, his recent command of the 20th Army Corps and his promotion to brigadier general — to frame him as a combat-experienced officer. Several outlets place the appointment in the broader context of Commander-in-Chief Mykhailo Drapatyi's leadership reshuffles, following earlier reporting under the headline "Velyki perestanovky Drapatoho," and connect it to statements by Defense Minister Khmara calling for greater commander accountability for soldiers' lives.
Where reporting differs
Sources disagree on Zaits' rank prior to his appointment as Ground Forces commander: one source describes him as holding the rank of colonel, while a confirmed fact records that President Zelensky awarded him the rank of brigadier general on May 8, 2026. Sources also differ on his specific unit in 2014 — most identify him as commander of a reconnaissance company of the 25th Air Assault Brigade, while one source describes the unit as a reconnaissance-assault company of the 25th Brigade of the 36th Coastal Guard Brigade.
Background
Zaits rose through the Air Assault Forces, serving as chief of staff – deputy commander of the 8th Corps before taking command of the 20th Army Corps in April 2026. His predecessor in that role, Viktor Nikolyuk, went on to command the operational command "East." hromadske had earlier reported on the possibility of Zaits being offered the Ground Forces post as part of Commander-in-Chief Mykhailo Drapatyi's personnel reshuffles. On the same day as the appointment, Drapatyi published leadership principles naming people as the most valuable combat asset of the Armed Forces, and days earlier Defense Minister Khmara had stressed greater commander responsibility for preserving soldiers' lives.