The commander of the Southern Military District is stepping down to coordinate Western assistance.

Brigadier General Gennady Shapovalov announced that he is stepping down from his position as the commander of the Operational Command "South".

According to RBK-Ukraine, he made this announcement on the Facebook page of the Operational Command "South".

"I had the honor of being the commander of the troops of the operational command 'South' - a powerful military collective that has bravely and selflessly defended the independence and sovereignty of Ukraine in all directions since the first days of the Russo-Ukrainian war," Shapovalov wrote.

He expressed gratitude to his subordinates for their service and protection of Ukraine.

"I am convinced that you will continue to strive for excellence, fulfilling your military duty honorably and enhancing the glory of the Ukrainian army in pursuit of our victory," he emphasized.

What will Shapovalov do next

At the end of January, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Brigadier General Gennady Shapovalov to a new position. He will coordinate military assistance to Ukraine in Wiesbaden.

It is noteworthy that this location hosts the NATO command for providing assistance and training for Ukraine. The opening of this center was one of the key commitments made by NATO members at the Alliance summit in July 2024.

Who is Shapovalov

Gennady Shapovalov is a brigadier general. He began his career as a tank platoon commander and later became the commander of the separate motorized infantry brigade named after Yakov Handziuk. In 2022, he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. Shapovalov also graduated from the U.S. Army War College.

On June 20, 2023, he became a member of the Commission on Issues of Coordinating Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine.

In the spring of last year, Shapovalov was appointed commander of the Operational Command "South". In this role, he replaced Andriy Kovalchuk, who took over the Military Academy of Odessa.