Syrskyi tells BBC Ukraine has 'broken Russia's ability to advance,' defends Kursk operation

Why it matters

The interview is Syrskyi's first public account since his summer 2026 dismissal, and revisits two contested questions central to the trajectory of the war: whether the front is genuinely stabilising and whether the Kursk operation justified the resources and risk it absorbed. His claim of a six-to-one casualty ratio in Ukraine's favour is at odds with every other publicly cited estimate and is likely to feed directly into debates in Kyiv and among Western capitals about whether, and from what position, any future negotiations should be conducted. He also offers a rival narrative to Fedorov's about the chain of events that led to both men leaving their posts, which matters for how the episode is remembered inside Ukraine's defence establishment.

What happened

Former commander-in-chief Oleksandr Syrskyi spoke to the BBC about the state of the war and the circumstances of his dismissal. He said Russia's daily losses are around 1,500 servicemen and that overall Russian losses run roughly six times Ukraine's, up to eleven times higher when counting only the dead. He described the front as stabilised, noting that in the first six months of 2026 Russia had seized only around 61 square kilometres overall and that in September 2026 Moscow, according to the Institute for the Study of War, lost more territory than it took. He framed the war as a contest of technologies, industrial capacity, finances and coalitions, not just armies, and said unmanned systems now account for 80% of Russian losses.

Syrskyi defended the August 2024 Kursk operation, which President Zelensky had approved, saying it was launched after Russia went on the offensive across 13 operational directions with a four-to-six-fold advantage in places. He said three brigades took part — only one at full strength — and within a month Ukraine had taken control of 1,273 square kilometres, which halted Russian advances on every front except Pokrovsk and forced Russia to redeploy about 70,000 troops into the Kursk direction. He argued that those brigades could not have made a difference at Pokrovsk given their state, and that the operation bought time to rest units and restore combat capability.

He also disputed Fedorov's version of their falling-out. Syrskyi said the dispute was over procurement — that Fedorov had created an "imbalance" by prioritising drones while neglecting unmanned ground vehicles, pick-up trucks and motorbikes, so that the army received only about half the drones it needed. He denied issuing any ultimatum against Fedorov and said he was at a command post on the Lyman direction when the dispute became public. He added that the decision to dismiss him was the president's alone to take.

How Ukrainian sources describe it

Ukrainian outlets have built their coverage around Syrskyi's defence of the Kursk operation, foregrounding the troop numbers, directions and territorial figures and presenting him as a commander laying out the rationale for his decisions in detail. They give prominent space to the timeline of his dismissal, the street protests that followed the news of Fedorov's reported sacking and the choice of Mykhailo Drapatyi as his replacement, and they have highlighted the changes Drapatyi has already made at the General Staff — cancelling more than 30 outdated orders and reversing several of Syrskyi's personnel and deployment decisions, including the reinstatement of officers such as Emil Ishkulov.

How international sources describe it

The BBC interview foregrounds Syrskyi's claim that Ukraine has 'broken Russia's ability to advance' and centres the casualty and territorial figures he cites, setting them against independent estimates from UK intelligence, the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Institute for the Study of War, and noting that neither Russia nor Ukraine releases official figures. The BBC also gives space to soldiers' allegations that Syrskyi ordered units to hold positions even when nearly surrounded, offering a critical counterpoint to his own account.

Where reporting differs

Syrskyi and former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov give opposing accounts of who issued an ultimatum in their dispute: Syrskyi denies setting any condition against Fedorov and says he was at the front when the accusations surfaced, while Fedorov has said he did not demand 'either me or Syrskyi' and that it was Syrskyi who effectively issued the ultimatum. Estimates of war losses diverge sharply: Syrskyi puts Russia's total losses at roughly six times Ukraine's and up to eleven times in killed; UK intelligence estimates around half a million Russians killed since 2022; the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies estimates up to 150,000 Ukrainians killed by June 2026. Neither side publishes official figures.

Background

Syrskyi was appointed commander-in-chief in 2024 and was dismissed by President Zelensky in July 2026 after a public dispute with then-defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov that triggered street protests in Kyiv and other cities demanding Syrskyi's removal. Zelensky initially moved to fire Fedorov, but the protests led to Syrskyi's dismissal as well. He was replaced by Maj Gen Mykhailo Drapatyi, who has since reorganised the General Staff and reversed several of Syrskyi's personnel and deployment decisions. The Kursk operation, which began on 6 August 2024, was approved by Zelensky after Russia had gone on the offensive on multiple operational directions in Ukraine.