Faced with the scandal sparked by the revelations of a Ukrainian investigative media about the Anne brigade of kyiv, trained and financed by France, Mykhailo Drapatyi, the commander of the army, went to the front line. He recognized structural problems within the Ukrainian army while ensuring that he was working to remedy them.
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From our correspondent in kyiv,
Mykhailo Drapatyi: There are problems, we realize that. There were problems in terms of personnel, training and partly team composition. All this was observed and certain conclusions were drawn.
These negative experiences must be analyzed to be useful and become something positive. Appropriate decisions will be taken by the relevant officials so that these problems are no longer possible. This is very important for us and not just at the level of this brigade, it concerns the entire army.
RFI: You took office recently. The published survey speaks of “ organizational chaos “. What are your plans to reform the organization of the army in order to better meet the most modern needs? ?
In general, a word such as “chaos” is not admissible in Ukraineand even less in the army. I don’t believe that any other country in the world has had the experience of mobilizing in such difficult conditions, and everyone must understand this. It is important for society to implement appropriate measures, not just for the army.
Unfortunately, we lack immediate replacements: people who are trained and coordinated to go into the field. We have taken steps to prepare and organize this combat unit so that it is fully operational. “Chaos” is a big word. There have been problems, they exist, no one denies it.
With the modernization of the army, applications on telephone for example, will it be easier to see which brigade will receive which equipment ? Will there be more transparency ? Because, for example, for this brigade there was also an allegation that it did not have enough electronic equipment, drones and jammers…
I am sure of it, and it is one of the objectives that I set when I was appointed. We need this digitalization, to improve these processes, this interconnection… I’m sure, yes. And besides, the 155th brigade is already in our ranking of units that successfully use drones and unmanned aerial vehicles. This is what we are developing here. The brigade fights, it inflicts losses on the enemy.
We had a meeting with my French colleague, the Chief of Staff of the Army of the French Republic, Pierre Schillwho, I hope and know, will become my friend. We discussed further cooperation, not only at the level of personal contacts, the provision of material and technical assistance, but also the exchange of experiences and training provided by instructors ideally on the territory Ukrainian. There are plans and I think we will implement them.
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