Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council Rustem Umerov is expected to be appointed head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service.
Suspilne reported this, citing sources in the Office of the President. The information about the possible appointment was also confirmed by MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak.
According to him, the idea of appointing Umerov to lead the Foreign Intelligence Service is not new. This option was considered before he was appointed secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, but the latter position was chosen at the time.
Oleh Luhovskyi is currently serving as acting head of the Foreign Intelligence Service. He was appointed in February 2026 after the previous chief, Oleh Ivashchenko, took over as head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine.
Zhelezniak also said that the issue of appointing Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States had, for now, been left unchanged while officials observed how partners would react to further developments.
UPDATE 13:44 Volodymyr Zelenskyy has confirmed the appointment of Umerov as head of Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service.
The former Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko, is to become the new Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council.
