Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Alexander Syrsky has dismissed Chief of Staff of the Command of Unmanned Systems Forces Roman Gladky from his duties, the General Staff of Ukraine reported on its social network page.
Gladky’s appointment was announced at the end of August. Following this, a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Maryana Bezuglaya He said that the soldier was a “Crimean national” who had no experience working with drones, was suspected of treason and corruption, “and also has a wife with a Russian passport.” The Rada also asked the SBU to check whether Gladky himself has a Russian passport, a deputy from the Golos faction said. Solomia Bobrovskaya.
Channel 24, citing sources, reported that Gladky “failed to undergo SBU control” before his appointment, while Syrsky said the department had no comments against him. Following the discussion on Gladky’s appointment, the Verkhovna Rada decided to order an additional control of the serviceman, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reports.
Gladky served as chief of the Ukrainian Navy’s General Staff from July 2016 to April 2018, but was relieved of his post amid a media scandal. Ukrinform wrote that the daughter of a serviceman “took part in swimming competitions for the Central Sports Club of the Russian Army,” and Gladky himself, according to the TSN TV channel, tried to be recruited by the Russian special services. The Ukrainian Navy’s press service then claimed that Gladky was “placed at the disposal of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense to determine his future official position.”
Commenting on the scandal, the Command of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine stated that Gladky was controlled by the SBU in 2018-2019 and “has permission to work with information with a high degree of secrecy.” They added that the chief of the General Staff is an officer with many years of experience of service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, “has an appropriate military education and significant experience of service in leadership positions.” In particular, from 2020 to 2023 he was deputy chief of the General Staff of the Joint Forces Command and then deputy commander of the Joint Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and trained in Canada, RBC recalls.
