With Hennadiy Shapovalov, a representative of the new generation of Ukrainian officers is taking command of the land forces. The brigadier general has extensive combat experience and knows the structures according to NATO-standards.
Hennadyi Shapovalov, born in 1978 in the Kirovohrad region, underwent a thorough military education: he first graduated from the Armored Forces Institute at Kharkiv State Polytechnic University and then from the Command and Staff Institute of the National Defense University of Ukraine. His training was supplemented by studies at the renowned US Army War College, which specializes in training general staff officers.
In his military career, Shapovalov served as commander of an armored platoon and rose to become commander of the renowned 59th motorized infantry brigade “Yakov Handsiuk”. In April 2024, he took command of the operational “Southern Command” and at the same time of the operational force group “Tavriya” until February 2025.
He then led the Ukrainian team in the NATO mission to coordinate military aid to Ukraine, based in Wiesbaden (Germany).
As commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian land forces, Shapovalov is now tasked with strengthening the army’s operational capability, improving the mobilization system and introducing modern command and control approaches in line with NATO standards.
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