, insignia = Нн ГШ ЗСУ.png , insigniasize = , insigniacaption = Sleeve patch of the General Staff , flag = Standard of Ukrainian Chief of the General Staff rect.svg , flagsize = , flagborder = , flagcaption = Flag of the Chief of the General Staff , image = Shaptala S O.jpg , imagesize = , alt = , incumbent = Lieutenant General Serhiy Shaptala , acting = , incumbentsince = 28 July 2021 , department =

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

, style = , type = , status = , abbreviation = , member_of = the

General Staff A military staff or general staff (also referred to as army staff, navy staff, or air staff within the individual services) is a group of officers, enlisted and civilian staff who serve the commander of a division or other large military ...

, reports_to = Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces , residence = , seat = , nominator = , appointer =

President of Ukraine The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...

, appointer_qualified = , termlength = , termlength_qualified = , constituting_instrument = , precursor = , formation = April 1918
23 December 1991 , first = Colonel Oleksandr Slyvynsky , last = , abolished = , succession = , unofficial_names = , deputy = , salary = , website = The Chief of the General Staff ( uk, Начальник Генерального штабу) is the

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

of the

General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Генеральний штаб Збройних сил України) is the military staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It is the central organ of the Armed Forces Administration and o ...

. He/she is appointed by the

. If the

Minister of Defense A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in s ...

is a civilian the Chief of the General Staff becomes the commander-in-chief of the

Armed Forces of Ukraine , imports = , exports = , history = , ranks = Military ranks of Ukraine , country=Ukraine The Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Збро́йні си́ли Украї́ни), most commonly know ...

. The current Chief of the General Staff is Serhiy Shaptala. Previously the Chief of the General Staff also served concurrently as the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ( uk, Головнокомандувач Збройних сил України), a position just second to the Supreme Commander in Chief. On 28 March 2020 a decree by President

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

divided the posts of Commander-in-Chief and Chief of General Staff.

Chiefs of General Staff

Armed Forces of Ukraine

The office created upon the reorganization of the Soviet

Kyiv Military District The Kiev Military District (; , abbreviated ) was a military district of the Imperial Russian Army and subsequently of the Red Army and Soviet Armed Forces. It was first formed in 1862, and was headquartered in Kiev (Kyiv) for most of its exi ...

when its head,

Colonel General Colonel general is a three- or four-star military rank used in some armies. It is particularly associated with Germany, where historically general officer ranks were one grade lower than in the Commonwealth and the United States, and was a ra ...

Viktor Chechevatov,Viktor Chechevatov
after receiving the offer to be appointed to the post, refused to pledge his

allegiance An allegiance is a duty of fidelity said to be owed, or freely committed, by the people, subjects or citizens to their state or sovereign. Etymology From Middle English ''ligeaunce'' (see medieval Latin ''ligeantia'', "a liegance"). The ''al ...

to the

Ukrainian people Ukrainians ( uk, Українці, Ukraintsi, ) are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. They are the seventh-largest nation in Europe. The native language of the Ukrainians is Ukrainian. The majority of Ukrainians are Eastern Orth ...

. Originally it was known as Chief of the Headquarters and was designated as the First Deputy of the

. In 1996 it was changed to Chief of the General Staff. In 2002 as part of military reform, the post was separated from the civil service and lost its ministerial deputy functions. In 2005 Chief of the General Staff was reaffirmed as the primary commander of the Armed Forces in the country and was granted a parallel post of Commander-in-Chief. In 2020 another reorganization took place as part of ongoing military reform triggered by the Russian aggression and the post of Commander-in-Chief was split into a separate post.

Chiefs of General Staff

Armed Forces of Ukraine

Historical offices

Ukrainian People's Republic

West Ukrainian National Republic

Notes

References