President Zelenskiy reassigns Rustem Umerov to head foreign intelligence in ongoing administration reshuffle

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has appointed Rustem Umerov, former Defence Minister and head of the National Security and Defence Council, as the country’s new chief of foreign intelligence.

Despite taking on the intelligence portfolio, Umerov will retain his role leading Ukraine’s peace delegation in negotiations aimed at ending the conflict with Russia.

The personnel shift is part of a broader cabinet restructuring initiated in July that saw former Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko named to head the Security Council, while former Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov and top military commander Oleksandr Syrskiy were relieved of their positions.

The decision to remove Fedorov, an advocate for digital and drone warfare, sparked public criticism and street demonstrations calling for his reinstatement. While critics argue the reshuffle repeatedly shifts a small circle of close political allies between senior posts, government officials maintain the structural changes are designed to optimize national defense preparations ahead of anticipated winter strikes on energy infrastructure.