In this undated photo provided by the Ukrainian Parliament Press Office, Rustem Umerov poses for photo in Kyiv, Ukraine. On Wednesday, Sept. 6, 2023 Umerov was appointed Ukraine’s new Defense Minister. Photo: Ukrainian Parliament Press Office via AP
Ukraine’s parliament approved the appointment of former lawmaker Rustem Umerov as Defence Minister on September 6, in the biggest shake-up of the defence establishment since Russia’s invasion 18 months ago.
Mr. Umerov (41) replaces Oleksii Reznikov, who helped secure billions of dollars of Western military aid as Defence Minister but was dogged by media allegations of corruption at the Ministry and sacked by President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday.
Mr. Reznikov did not face corruption allegations himself, but says he is the victim of a smear campaign. His removal is not expected to affect Ukraine’s military strategy.
“Our main objective is victory,” Mr. Umerov wrote on Facebook after parliament voted overwhelmingly to back him.
“I will do everything possible and impossible for Ukraine’s victory – when we will liberate every centimetre of our country and each our person.”
Lawmakers had approved Mr. Reznikov’s removal on Monday, after he tendered his resignation following Mr. Zelensky’s decision to dismiss him.
“Welcome aboard, Minister,” the Defence Ministry wrote on X (formerly Twitter). Mr. Reznikov said Mr. Umerov was “a great fit” for the position. “The challenges are many but such are the times in which we live. Unity is the key to our victory,” he said on X.
When proposing Mr. Umerov, a Crimean Tatar, Zelenskiy said new approaches and other forms of interaction with the military and society were needed as Russia’s invasion entered its 19th month.
“To head the defence institution during the full-scale war with Russia is a big responsibility,” Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said. “We expect that the new minister will quickly step into his duties and continue reforms of the defence sector.”
Before his appointment, Mr. Umerov, who speaks English and Turkish, headed Ukraine’s main privatisation agency — the State Property Fund — for about a year.
He was credited for overturning the institution and restarting the efforts to sell loss-making state-owned companies to private investors despite the war.
