President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that he has offered Igor Klymenko the post of Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine. According to the Head of State, the decree appointing him is already being drafted. According to the latest official reports from the Council, Rustem Umerov remains the current Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council.
Briefly about the main points
- Zelenskyy has asked Ihor Klymenko to become Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council.
- The President announced that a decree on the appointment was being prepared.
- Legally speaking, the appointment has not yet been formalised by a published decree.
- Rustem Umerov currently remains the Council’s Secretary.
- Klymenko is no longer a candidate for the post of Defence Minister.
The President has set out the priorities for the National Security and Defence Council
Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Igor Klimenko will continue to work in the field of protecting the state and its people. He thanked him for his service within the Ministry of the Interior, noting that it had taken place against a backdrop of «difficult challenges».
The President identified the main task as ensuring the most effective possible coordination between all components of the security and defence sector. He placed particular emphasis on the day-to-day monitoring of the implementation of decisions NSDC and the Supreme Commander-in-Chief’s Headquarters.
Zelenskyy has identified the coordination of defence production as another priority. The National Security and Defence Council’s secretariat is already working on issues relating to the defence industry and international defence cooperation, in particular the agreements reached at the NATO summit in July.
Umerov formally remains in office
The President’s announcement does not yet constitute a final decision on the appointment. As of 17 July, the relevant decree had not been published in the official register of the President’s documents.
Official statements from the National Security and Defence Council dated 15 July and thereafter indicated Rustem Umerov as Secretary of the Council. That is precisely why the discussion centres on Klymenko’s proposal and the drafting of the decree, rather than on an appointment that has already been made.
Klymenko has been dropped from the Ministry of Defence’s plans
The day before, Zelenskyy had named Klymenko as one of the candidates for the post Minister of Defence. That same evening, the President announced that, on his instructions, the following person would temporarily assume the duties of the Minister of Defence: Yevhen Khmara.
Klymenko is also no longer head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs: on 16 July, Ivan Vyhivskyi was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs. The proposal to move to the National Security and Defence Council is part of the personnel changes within the security sector following the formation of the new government.
A reallocation of roles within the security bloc
Personnel decisions are dividing responsibilities between ministries: Vyhovskyi is to head the Ministry of the Interior, Khmara is to act as interim head of the Ministry of Defence, and Klymenko has been offered a coordinating role within the National Security and Defence Council. If the decree is signed, the practical test for him will be the fulfilment of the presidential tasks — inter-agency coordination, oversight of decisions by the High Command and the National Security and Defence Council, and work on defence production.
These tasks take on added significance given the extension of martial law and general mobilisation until 31 October 2026. At the same time, any formal change of the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council is subject to a presidential decree.
