Ukraine’s parliament has confirmed Yevhenii Khmara, a former special forces commander, as the country’s defense minister after a month in the post on an acting basis.
As DR reports, lawmakers approved Khmara on August 19, 2026, making his appointment permanent. He has left active military service, since Ukrainian law states that only a civilian can head the defense ministry.
According to Reuters, Khmara received 312 votes in the Verkhovna Rada, well above the 226 required. Interfax-Ukraine notes that he becomes the 21st defense minister of independent Ukraine, nominated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Khmara’s military record includes leading the elite Alfa unit, where he helped orchestrate the operation known as Spider’s Web. In June of last year, 117 drones struck five Russian regions after a year and a half of planning, damaging Russian military aircraft and equipment. Ukraine’s security service, the SBU, said afterward that Russian materiel worth around 46 billion kroner had been destroyed.
In a post published by the Ukrainian defense ministry on X, Khmara listed three main priorities, with the front line named first. He wrote that Ukraine must take the strategic initiative on land, at sea, in the air and in the information space. That, per Khmara, requires fast communication in both directions between the front and the ministry.
Supplies must match the pace of the war, and unnecessary bureaucracy must be removed, the minister stated. Procurement, he added, should serve only the front and the defense of Ukraine, not special interests. He also promised more Ukrainian-made weapons, with particular focus on medium and long range strikes.
The second priority is what Khmara calls human capital, meaning the lives and health of soldiers. He wrote that a fighter is motivated by respect, high-quality training and fair service conditions. As noted in the same post, technology should both give Ukrainian forces an advantage and reduce risk to personnel.
His third priority is Ukraine’s defense industry, which he describes as the foundation of the country’s strength now and its security in the years ahead. Zelenskyy wrote on X that Khmara’s main task is to make defense, production, procurement and supply function effectively. The president added that occupiers are not defeated with empty promises.
Timing of the vote
The Kyiv Independent reported that parliament returned from its summer recess on August 18, with the vote on Khmara expected the following day. Ukrainska Pravda reported that the parliamentary defense committee backed him unanimously, with all 15 members in favor.
Khmara was named acting minister on July 20 after Zelenskyy dismissed the popular Mykhailo Fedorov. Reuters framed the confirmation against weeks of protests over that dismissal. DR reports that demonstrators supporting Fedorov again gathered outside the parliament building during the vote.
