Ukraine trains frontline commanders to make battlefield decisions

Kyiv, Ukraine. Ukraine’s military is training frontline commanders to make more decisions on the battlefield as it seeks to move away from a Soviet-era culture of rigid, top-down command. Staff Sergeant Vitalii Tomchyshak says senior officers too often overrule combat commanders without understanding the situation on the ground.

Training frontline leaders

Tomchyshak, a 27-year-old former software developer, was among 103 battle-hardened squad commanders pulled from the front line for an intensive three-month course this summer. “It doesn’t matter who you are — a sergeant, an officer, anyone — you need to be listened to,” he said.

The course aims to make the commanders more effective leaders and help a younger generation of troops make autonomous decisions. Many participants are in their twenties and early thirties and already have expertise in infantry tactics, drone warfare, artillery and logistics.

Changes in military culture

As Russia wages war in Ukraine, the Ukrainian army is seeking to change its leadership culture as well as its technology. Despite innovations that have helped it hold back a bigger, better-armed enemy through more than four years of war, the military has faced criticism over heavy losses in some units and poor treatment of some troops. Some have blamed those factors for discouraging men from joining.

Expectations are high that the new commander-in-chief, 43-year-old General Mykhailo Drapatyi, will fulfil his pledge to improve command practices and prioritise soldiers’ lives.

Practising battlefield decisions

In one exercise, a dozen commanders gathered around a map marked with tokens representing military units to plan how to repel a Russian assault on a village. Dice rolls determined whether operations succeeded or failed, forcing them to improvise and communicate with colleagues.