War in Ukraine | “We call him the butcher”

The appointment of General Oleksandr Syrsky as head of the Ukrainian army sometimes arouses distrust within the troops. Soldiers confided in our collaborator.

(Donetsk, Ukraine) “I cried when I learned of Zalouzhny’s resignation,” explains Mykhailo, 25 years old and soldier of the 36, with dismay.^e naval infantry brigade.

After several weeks of speculation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky finally announced on February 8 that Valeri Zalouzhny, 50, then head of the Ukrainian armies, would be replaced by General Oleksandr Syrsky, 58.

In a context where support for Ukraine is immobilized in the American Congress and where the Ukrainian army, surrounded by Russian forces in the town of Avdiïvka (Donetsk oblast) had to finally withdraw, this reshuffle is seen as the one of the most important decisions since the start of the war in 2022.

Loved by his men, General Zaloujny had the reputation of a man of integrity, courageous and aware of the lives of his men.

In a poll published by the Kyiv Institute of Sociology in December 2023, his popularity rating (88%) among the Ukrainian population exceeded that of President Zelensky (62%).

Conversely, General Syrsky carries behind him the reputation of a withdrawn, cold man, with brutal methods and little sparing of the lives of his men.

During his first speech as head of the Ukrainian armies, Syrsky nevertheless declared that “the life and health of soldiers has always been and remains the main value of the Ukrainian army”.

His first decision was also to withdraw his troops from the besieged town of Avdiïvka and to spare the lives of his men.

But within the army, suspicion remains and anger is brewing.

“He sees the lives of his men as a mathematical equation”

Serhii, a 24-year-old soldier engaged in the 124^e brigade of territorial forces, recognizes Syrsky for his decisive role during the defense of Kyiv at the very beginning of the war and his masterstroke during the Kharkiv counter-offensive in September 2022. But the young soldier is stuck on one detail: the past of Syrsky.

“For me, Bars [nom de guerre de Syrsky] remains Russian,” confides the young soldier.

Syrsky was born in Russia in 1965 into an ethnic Russian family before moving as a child to Kharkiv (north-eastern Ukraine) in the 1970s.

A brilliant student, he graduated from the Higher Military Command School in Moscow in 1985 before returning to Ukraine as an officer in the Red Army. When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, Syrsky chose Ukraine and joined its army.

“I served under his orders,” Mykhailo explains with a sigh. Unlike Zalouzhny, he sees the lives of his men as a mathematical equation. That’s why we call him the butcher. »

He takes this title from his role during the Battle of Bakhmout throughout the winter of 2023.

Against the advice of General Zaluzhny, Syrsky, then general of the ground forces in charge of the defense of Bakhmut, repeatedly refused to withdraw his troops from the besieged city.

Faced with a Russian army ready to do anything to take the city, Syrsky had chosen attrition. His calculation was simple: inflict maximum losses on the enemy and hold out as long as possible in order to prepare for the summer counter-offensive.

If the latter proved inconclusive, the battle of Bakhmout nevertheless resulted in the virtual disappearance of the Wagner private military company and the mutiny of its leader, Evgeni Prigojine.

In his defense, Aslan Ocherkhadzhiev, one of the commanders of the Chechen Sheikh Mansour battalion, considers this title to be relatively unfair. He says: “He is nicknamed “the butcher” simply because he fights to the end and demands that his soldiers do the same. He refuses to surrender and leave the slightest piece of territory to the Russians. »

“More determined, harder”

Daniil, nom de guerre “Rabbi”, in his forties and combat doctor of the third assault brigade, tries to put things into perspective. Although he deplores the departure of Zalouzhny, he is not alarmed by the appointment of General Syrsky.

“It’s true that he has a bad reputation. But he led the land army during the toughest operations of the war. He remains one of our most capable generals and is surrounded by a very experienced team. »

Rabbi, who has just returned from Avdiïvka, does not think for his part that the new general withdrew from the city to improve his image among his soldiers and clear his reputation as a “butcher”.

“The situation was desperate. We had to withdraw. Syrsky knew there was no point in continuing to guard the city,” says Rabbi.

Mykhailo, like Rabbi, believes that the capture of Avdiïvka was more the result of a lack of equipment than a truly altruistic decision on Syrsky’s part.

“Syrsky has a different approach to war; he is more determined, tougher than Zalouzhny, explains Aslan Ocherkhadzhiev. He is ready to make more radical changes in his tactics and in the way he organizes the army. I think very hard times await the Russian army. »

Rabbi, despite Avdiïvka’s withdrawal, nevertheless confirms the fears shared by many soldiers regarding the change of command.

“We all know what his appointment means,” he finally admitted, stroking his long beard. “That means we’re going to go to trouble. »