Ukraine is reshaping its defense and intelligence leadership and operations as U.S.-backed peace efforts and pressure from Russia continue.
Ukraine’s top security chief, Vasyl Malyuk, has stepped down as head of the Security Service of Ukraine, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accelerates a broader wartime reshuffle of senior defense, security, and diplomatic leadership.
Zelenskyy signed a decree on Jan. 5 appointing Yevhen Khmara, head of the Security Service’s elite special operations unit known as Center “A,” to serve as acting chief of the Security Service of Ukraine, known as the SBU.
In a public statement on the Telegram app, Malyuk said he was leaving the post of SBU chief but would remain inside the agency to focus on “world-class asymmetric special operations” that would continue to inflict “maximum damage on the enemy.” He thanked Zelenskyy for defense reforms and expressed hope in a “just peace” for Ukraine that would help the war-torn country flourish.
“I am confident that a strong and modern special service is the guarantor of our state’s security,” Malyuk said. “Eternal honor to those who gave their lives for our future.”
Zelenskyy confirmed the transition in a social media post, saying he had thanked Malyuk for his combat service and personally asked him to concentrate on asymmetric warfare, an area the president said represented his greatest strength.
“There must be more Ukrainian asymmetric operations against the occupier and the Russian state, and more solid results in eliminating the enemy,” Zelenskyy wrote. “I tasked Vasyl Malyuk with making our asymmetric operations the strongest in the world. The necessary resources and political support are in place.”
Khmara, who has overseen high-risk special operations throughout the nearly four-year war, was named acting head of the SBU under the Jan. 5 presidential decree. Zelenskyy said he and Malyuk also discussed candidates for a permanent appointment.
Zelenskyy said he met with Khmara on Monday, and that the two men discussed scaling up the operations of the Center “A” special operations unit, as well as opportunities to bolster the “institutional development” of the SBU.
“Ukraine is achieving the necessary results in its defense, and all our warriors who make this possible deserve the highest respect and gratitude,” Zelenskyy said.
By Tom Ozimek
