President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Rustem Umerov, the former Secretary of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council (RNBO), to head the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (SZRU) via a presidential decree on Monday.Oleh Yukhnovskyi, the acting head of the SZRU, has been relieved of his duty simultaneously via a separate decree.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.Umerov previously served as Ukraine’s defense minister until July 2025, when he then presided over the RNBO and also served as the chief negotiator for Kyiv’s negotiation team to the US.Umerov was previously implicated in purportedly leaked discussions with sanctioned businessman Tymur Mindich, where he was reportedly identified as one of the voices discussing channeling funding into arms maker Fire Point.Fire Point categorically denied the accusations, and no charges were brought against Umerov as of Aug. 3, 2026.Around a week prior to Umerov’s appointment to the SZRU, Zelensky said Umerov was tasked with coordinating negotiations, the end of the war, and Ukraine’s “Freyja” anti-ballistic system, according to state media Ukrinform.The “Frejya” is currently in joint development with Europe to develop a cheaper alternative to the US-made Patriot system in the next 12 months, as the shortage of Patriot missiles persists in Ukraine, compounded by the uncertainty over its licensed production in the country following the latest backtracking from US President Donald Trump.