Ukraine's General Staff announced on July 29 an audit of combat unit staffing and manpower allocation under its new commander, General Mykhailo Drapatyi. The move comes after long-standing criticism of Drapatyi's predecessor as Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, over the disproportionate diversion of Ukraine's scarce mobilized recruits to newly formed brigades and assault units widely criticized as ineffective and notorious for abuse, violence, and wasteful attacks. "The key goal is to assess the actual state of manning in brigades, regiments, and corps, analyze the effectiveness of personnel distribution among units, and identify ways to improve personnel management," the General Staff's announcement read. The military's handling of manpower became a major source of public criticism of Syrskyi, who was dismissed by President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 21 after protests over the dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov expanded to include demands for his removal. Nicknamed "butcher" ever since his days commanding the defense of Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast, Syrskyi spent the last year of his tenure personally expanding assault battalions into oversized regiments numbering in the thousands, while regular mechanized brigades were desperately short of replenishments. One of the units, the notorious 425th Assault Regiment, better known as Skelia, has dominated headlines in recent months as the worst example of the inhumane treatment of soldiers, after an investigation by Ukrainian media outlet Babel found dozens of cases of the death of service members during training. In public interviews, Syrskyi acknowledged the uneven distribution in favor of assault units, but justified it by citing their heavier losses, suffered while undertaking difficult and costly assault operations. Drapatyi, who has built a reputation for human-centric leadership during his time as Ground Forces commander, has been projected to correct some of the more glaring internal issues exacerbating the manpower crisis, changes that will be crucial if Ukraine is to survive Russia's war of attrition. "These decisions are aimed at increasing combat readiness, ensuring personnel balance and more rational use of human capital," the announcement added. "Any systemic changes in the army begin with a change in attitude towards a person." The General Staff's announcement is not the first attempt to review the process of manpower allocation in the military. In November 2025, presidential advisor and former brigade commander Pavlo Palisa led an effort to assess the fairness of personnel distribution between brigades, while Fedorov himself had announced an audit of battlefield losses that likely put him on collision course with Syrskyi. Fighting against Russia, Ukraine's military has been locked in a chronic manpower crisis since 2024, when high losses among the infantry coincided with a decline in voluntary enlistment.
The audit aims to comprehensively evaluate the current state of manpower in key military formations, assess how effectively personnel are distributed across these units, and develop strategies for optimizing the management and deployment of military resources. The General Staff described the effort as a foundational reform measure to enhance transparency and efficiency in military operations. This shift in leadership and management style is seen as a response to widespread public dissatisfaction with Ukraine's defense strategy during the ongoing conflict.
Syrskyi's removal on July 21 came after a wave of public protests that began with the dismissal of Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov. Demonstrations quickly escalated to include calls for Syrskyi's resignation, with many citizens and lawmakers raising concerns about the military's performance and personnel management. Drapatyi's leadership is now tasked with restoring trust in the armed forces by implementing concrete changes that align with public expectations and improve operational effectiveness.
Ukrainian Strikes on Russian Infrastructure
On July 29, Ukrainian forces targeted a major oil refinery and a logistics center in Ryazan, a region approximately 360 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. The General Staff confirmed the attack on the Ryazan Oil Refinery, which resulted in a fire at the facility. This strike was part of a broader pattern of targeting Russian energy infrastructure, a strategy aimed at disrupting the Russian economy and degrading its capacity to support the war effort.
The Ryazan Oil Refinery, operated by Rosneft, is a critical piece of Russia’s energy infrastructure, with an annual production capacity of 17.1 million tons of oil. The facility contributes roughly 5% to Russia’s total oil processing. It has become a frequent target for Ukrainian strikes, with previous attacks, such as one in May, leading to temporary shutdowns that exacerbated fuel shortages across Russia.
While Zelensky did not explicitly identify the logistics center, local reports and monitoring groups suggested it was a warehouse operated by the Russian e-commerce company Wildberries. The destruction of such facilities is intended to disrupt supply chains that support the Russian military and its operations. Alongside the Ryazan strike, Ukrainian forces also attacked a Russian Black Sea Fleet base in Crimea, an export terminal in Rostov Oblast, and an oil refinery in Perm Krai.
President Zelensky told Fox News on July 28 that Russia’s President Vladimir Putin no longer holds the upper hand in the conflict but remains unmoved on the prospect of a ceasefire. Zelensky pointed to Ukraine’s growing defense technological capabilities, its focus on minimizing battlefield casualties, and the support of allies as key factors that have altered the war’s momentum. He stressed that these developments have significantly shifted the strategic landscape of the war.
Zelensky’s remarks followed a full day of diplomatic activity in Washington, D.C., where he met with U.S. During this time, Zelensky held discussions with Fox News host Sean Hannity, who delivered the eulogy for Graham, emphasizing the importance of continued international support for Ukraine and the broader implications of the ongoing conflict.
Russian forces continued their pattern of targeting civilian and military assets across Ukraine, resulting in one fatality and at least 30 injuries in six different oblasts on July 29. The deadliest incident occurred when a drone strike hit a bread delivery van in central Kherson during the morning rush hour, killing the driver. Local officials expressed outrage, noting that the vehicle was clearly marked with the word 'bread,' a detail that should have prevented such an attack.
Earlier that day, Russian Shahed-type drones struck residential areas in the same district, causing damage to homes and a local vehicle repair shop. Three men aged 44, 48, and 50 sustained injuries from the explosions, including blast wounds and shrapnel. Over the course of the night, Russia launched a total of 80 drones at Ukrainian territory, with Ukrainian air defenses successfully intercepting or suppressing 65 of them. The remaining 14 drones managed to hit ten locations.