Verkhovna Rada defence committee backs Yevhen Khmara as nominee for defence minister
Defence committee voted unanimously (15 present); plenary ballot set for today with more than 260 votes expected.
Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada defence committee has given unanimous backing to Yevhen Khmara as the nominated defence minister, the committee’s 15 members voting in favour, lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak said on social media.
Plenary vote expected today
The committee’s approval clears the way for a full parliamentary vote scheduled for today; Zheleznyak said he expects Khmara to receive more than 260 votes in the Verkhovna Rada.
President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on 15 July that he had removed Mykhailo Fedorov from the post of defence minister and nominated Yevhen Khmara — the former acting head of the Security Service of Ukraine — as his replacement.
The move provoked protests in multiple Ukrainian cities demanding not only Fedorov’s reinstatement but also the replacement of the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.
Subsequently, Oleksandr Syrskyi announced his resignation as commander-in-chief. Mykhailo Drapaty was appointed the new commander-in-chief of the armed forces. At the same time Andriy Sibiha, a minister in the previous government, became acting foreign minister after the Yuliya Sviridenko government resigned.
On 18 August the president formally submitted the nominations of Yevhen Khmara for defence minister and Andriy Sibiha for foreign minister to parliament. Meanwhile, the dismissed defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov has called for elections during wartime, saying the country faces a systemic governance crisis and warning that corruption undermines military efforts.
Photo: printskrin / Mission of Ukraine to NATO
