烏克蘭軍方尋求賦予前線指揮官更多權限

作者：Thomas PeterBy Thomas Peter

路透基輔9月23日電——烏克蘭參謀中士維塔利・托姆奇沙克（Vitalii Tomchyshak）相信，他知道如何在戰場上擊敗俄羅斯：賦予像他這樣的前線領導者權力，讓他們能作出關鍵決策。KYIV, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Ukrainian staff sergeant Vitalii Tomchyshak believes he knows how to beat Russia on the battlefield: empower frontline leaders such as himself to make critical decisions.

托姆奇沙克說，作戰指揮官的意見太常遭到高階軍官否決，而這些高階軍官並不了解戰場情勢的具體細節。Too often, Tomchyshak says, combat commanders are overruled by senior officers who do not understand the specifics of a battlefield situation.

這名27歲的前軟體開發人員說：「不管你是誰——中士、軍官，或任何人——你的意見都需要被傾聽。」"It doesn't matter who you are — a sergeant, an officer, anyone — you need to be listened to," the 27-year-old former software developer said.

托姆奇沙克是103名身經百戰的班級指揮官之一。烏克蘭軍方今年夏天將他們從前線抽調出來，安排接受為期3個月的密集課程，目的是提升他們作為領導者的效能。Tomchyshak was among 103 battle-hardened squad commanders pulled from the front line by Ukraine's military and put through an intensive three-month course this summer aimed at increasing their effectiveness as leaders.

在俄羅斯對烏克蘭發動戰爭之際，烏克蘭軍隊正試圖自我轉型——不只是科技創新，也包括文化與領導方式。As Russia wages its war in Ukraine, the Ukrainian army is trying to transform itself — not just in terms of technological innovation, but also in its culture and leadership.

這意味著要拆解蘇聯時代那種僵化、由上而下的指揮文化，並鼓勵經歷實戰考驗的部隊發揮更多主動性。That means dismantling a Soviet-era culture of rigid, top-down command and encouraging more initiative from battle-tested troops.

烏克蘭軍方在超過4年的戰爭中不斷靠創新撐過來，抵擋規模更大、武裝更精良的敵人；但有些部隊傷亡慘重、部分官兵待遇不佳，也讓烏軍面臨批評。有人認為，這些因素削弱了男性從軍的意願。Despite innovating its way through more than four years of war to hold back a bigger, better-armed enemy, Ukraine’s military has faced criticism for heavy losses in some units and poor treatment of some troops — factors blamed by some for discouraging men from joining the military.

外界高度期待新任總司令、43歲的米哈伊洛・德拉帕特（Mykhailo Drapatyi）將落實他的承諾，推動更好的指揮實務，並把士兵生命置於優先地位。Expectations are high that the new commander-in-chief, 43-year-old General Mykhailo Drapatyi, will deliver on his pledge to promote better command practices and prioritise soldiers’ lives.

新世代NEW GENERATION

參與這項課程的許多男女軍人年齡介於20多歲到30歲出頭。課程旨在訓練較年輕一代的領導者，讓他們能在戰場上自主決策；這些人已精通步兵戰術、無人機作戰、砲兵與後勤。Many of the men and women on the course are in their twenties and early thirties. It aims to train a younger generation of leaders — already expert in infantry tactics, drone warfare, artillery and logistics — to make autonomous decisions on the battlefield.

十幾名指揮官圍在一張地圖旁，地圖上擺滿代表軍事單位的標記。他們正在進行兵棋推演，演練如何擊退俄軍對一座村莊的攻擊。擲骰子的結果決定行動成敗，迫使他們即興應變並與同僚溝通。Crowded around a map covered in tokens denoting military units, a dozen commanders are war-gaming how to repel a Russian assault on a village. A roll of a dice decides whether operations succeed or fail, forcing them to improvise and communicate with colleagues.

這項「上尉課程」由基輔國立大學軍事學院開辦，並由慈善組織「活著回來」基金會部分資助。自戰爭第一年推出以來，已訓練超過1,200名軍官。Run by the Military Institute of Kyiv National University and partly financed by charity Come Back Alive, the Captain’s Course has trained more than 1,200 officers since it was launched during the first year of the war.

23歲的國土防衛部隊中士阿爾特姆・丘哈列夫說，在烏克蘭難以徵募前線部隊之際，重點是保存人力。這與俄軍步兵攻勢形成鮮明對比，後者付出了高昂人命代價。With Ukraine struggling to draft frontline troops, the emphasis is on preserving manpower, said Artem Chukharev, a 23-year-old sergeant in the Territorial Defence Forces. This is in stark contrast to Russian infantry assaults that have come at a high human cost.

丘哈列夫讚揚這項課程鼓勵指揮官在充分掌握資訊後作出決策。他說：「我們根本不能像我們的宿敵那樣對待他們。」「我終於明白軍官是什麼，以及軍官應該是什麼樣子。」"We simply cannot afford to treat them the way our age-old enemy does," Chukharev said, praising the course for encouraging commanders to take informed decisions. "I finally realised what an officer is, and what he should be like."

這項課程並不輕鬆。雖然有88名指揮官在7月18日結訓，但15名學員未能畢業——其中2人是健康因素，其餘則是學業表現未達標。The programme is not easy. Although 88 commanders graduated on July 18, 15 students did not – two for health reasons and the remainder for academic shortcomings.

舊習難改OLD HABITS

戰場彈性並非烏克蘭軍隊的傳統特徵。營長「休士頓」表示，儘管俄羅斯2014年併吞克里米亞後，烏軍曾努力現代化，但在一些受過傳統高階軍官學院訓練的高階軍官之中，蘇聯式心態仍然存在。他要求僅以軍中呼號識別身分。Battlefield flexibility is not a traditional feature of Ukraine’s military. Despite efforts to modernise after Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, Soviet-style attitudes have persisted among some senior officers trained at traditional top-brass institutes, said battalion commander “Houston”, asking to be identified only by his military call sign.

「休士頓」是一名職業軍人，早在戰爭爆發前很久就已從軍，不同於烏克蘭80萬大軍中的許多人。他說：「那裡的軍官一開始就被灌輸某種對中士與士兵的仇視。」"Officers there are immediately instilled with a certain hatred toward sergeants and soldiers," said Houston, a career soldier who signed up long before the war, unlike much of Ukraine's 800,000-strong military.

德拉帕特7月接替61歲的亞歷山大・瑟爾斯基（Oleksandr Syrskyi）出任總司令。瑟爾斯基的批評者說，他容忍重大傷亡，並採取強勢作風，對長達1,200公里（745英里）的前線事必躬親。Drapatyi took over as commander-in-chief in July from 61-year-old Oleksandr Syrskyi, whose critics said he tolerated heavy losses and imposed a heavy-handed style, micromanaging the 1,200-km (745-mile) front line.

本月，德拉帕特與資深中士舉行高階會議，討論賦予士官團更多權力的方法。This month, Drapatyi held a high-level meeting with senior sergeants to discuss ways to empower the NCO corps.

他說：「中士昨天自己還是士兵。今天，他是最接近士兵的指揮官。」「他們才是最優先照顧普通士兵利益與需求的人。」"A sergeant was a soldier himself yesterday. Today, he is the commander who is closest to the soldier," he said. “They are the ones who care about the interests and needs of the ordinary soldier first and foremost.”

烏克蘭武裝部隊在回覆本文提問時表示，德拉帕特已在會後公布一份待解決問題清單，其中包括擴大士官權限、建立更清楚的指揮架構，以及改善薪資待遇。烏軍表示，解決這些問題的工作正在進行中。Ukraine’s armed forces, in response to questions for this article, said Drapatyi had published a list of problems to be addressed after the meeting – including an expansion of powers for non-commissioned officers, a clearer command structure and better pay. Work on solving the problems was underway, it said.

德拉帕特已提拔多名以擁抱北約式指揮文化聞名的高階指揮官，包括第三軍團指揮官安德里・比列茨基（Andriy Biletsky），負責監督烏克蘭東部防線的關鍵部分。Drapatyi has promoted several senior commanders known for embracing NATO-style command culture – including Andriy Biletsky, who commands the Third Army Corps - to oversee critical parts of Ukraine’s eastern defences.

「永遠不要停滯不前」‘NEVER STAND STILL’

丘哈列夫說，隨著新科技迅速改變戰爭樣貌，這項課程促使指揮官「不斷尋找並找到新的解決方案，調整舊有方案、加以修改、使其現代化」。「但永遠不要停滯不前。」With new technology rapidly changing the nature of warfare, the course pushes commanders "to constantly seek out and find new solutions, adapt old solutions, modify them, modernise them," Chukharev said. "But never stand still."

托姆奇沙克未對軍方最高層級的改革發表評論。他說，展現主動性仍常受到懲罰，尤其是在中士之中。Tomchyshak, who did not comment on the reforms at the highest level of the military, said that showing initiative was still often punished, particularly among sergeants.

他說，讓地方指揮官掌握更多主動權，將使烏克蘭在戰場上取得優勢，尤其是面對一個以惡劣對待自身部隊聞名的敵人。Letting local commanders take more of the initiative would hand Ukraine an advantage on the battlefield, he said, especially over an enemy known for treating its troops poorly.

他說：「我們會開始看到根本性的變化。」"We would begin to see radical change," he said.

（Daniel Flynn、Dan Peleschuk與Timothy Heritage編輯）(Editing by Daniel Flynn, Dan Peleschuk and Timothy Heritage)