Ukraine’s new spy chief Umerov sets out key goals for intelligence service

Rustem Umerov thanked the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, for his trust and stated that the Foreign Intelligence Service has the potential to become an even more powerful tool for protecting the state's national interests.

According to him, one of the key areas of work will remain the further development of Ukraine's international ties in the field of security and defense.

Umerov noted that in recent years, Ukraine has built large-scale cooperation with the US, UK, Norway, EU countries, the Middle East and the Persian Gulf, Türkiye, the South Caucasus states, and other partners.

"This provides a strong foundation for further advancing security, intelligence, and defense cooperation," he stated.

The focus is on the Drone Deal and the Freya program

Umerov named the implementation of strategic initiatives of the President of Ukraine, including the Drone Deal and the Freya anti-ballistic program, as a separate area of work.

The Drone Deal is an international initiative aimed at developing cooperation in the production and supply of unmanned systems to strengthen the defense capabilities of Ukraine and its partners.

The Freya program provides for the development of missile and air defense capabilities, in particular the creation of new technological solutions for protection against missile threats.

According to Umerov, these projects should strengthen not only Ukraine's defense capabilities but also the security capabilities of international partners.

Foreign Intelligence Service is planned to be strengthened

The new head of the Foreign Intelligence Service stated that his task will be to create conditions for the most effective work of the agency.

"My task is to strengthen its capabilities, provide the necessary resources, and create all the conditions for the most effective work," Umerov emphasized.

He also thanked the staff of the Foreign Intelligence Service for their service to the state and expressed confidence that together with the team, they would be able to do more for Ukraine's security.

Context of the statement

Today, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed Rustem Umerov from the position of Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) and appointed him head of the Foreign Intelligence Service. Before Umerov, the acting head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine was Oleh Luhovskyi.

Meanwhile, a possible candidate for the position of Ukraine's ambassador to the US is the deputy head of the Presidential Office, Pavlo Palisa. President Zelenskyy has already signed a decree dismissing Olha Stefanishyna from the position of Ukraine's ambassador to the US.