PoliticsJuly 17, 2026 2:37 pm • 1 min readFormer Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko at a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 17, 2026. (Volodymyr Zelensky/Telegram)Editor's note: The story is being updated. President Volodymyr Zelensky proposed former Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko the post of secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council."The appointment decree is already being prepared," Zelensky said on social media on July 17. The decision comes as part of broader government reshuffle. Klymenko is expected to replace Rustem Umerov, who has served as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council for the past year.Klymenko had previously been considered for the defense minister's post following the dismissal of Mykhailo Fedorov, who held the position for just six months. Fedorov's removal triggered protests across Ukraine.Parliament has approved the new Cabinet on July 16, leaving only the foreign and defense minister posts vacant. Under Ukrainian law, both positions are filled on the president's nomination.Amid the protests, Zelensky announced that acting Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) chief Yevhen Khmara is set to become acting defense minister.Umerov's future remains unclear. He also heads Ukraine's delegation to the trilateral peace talks with Russia and the U.S., which have been stalled since February.