Zelensky awards military ranks on Defender of Ukraine Day: significant personnel decisions
On Defender of Ukraine Day, President Volodymyr Zelensky made a significant personnel move by awarding high military ranks to several key military leaders of the country.
This decision served as a signal of support and recognition of their contribution to national defense.
According to published decrees No.
737/2025 and No.
717/2025, Commander of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, General Gennady Shapovalov, was promoted to the rank of Major General.
Additionally, Colonel Andriy Biletsky, commander of the 3rd Army Corps of the Eastern Operational Command, was promoted to Brigadier General.
The list of awards also includes Yuriy Petriv, head of the Southern Regional Department of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, who was promoted to Major General, and Yuriy Dremukh, First Deputy Director of the Planning Deployment Department and Chief of the Operational Directorate of the Main Directorate of the National Guard of Ukraine, promoted to Brigadier General.
These personnel decisions form part of a broader strategy to strengthen the country’s defense system and support military personnel who daily defend Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty.