Cabinet dismisses Deputy Defense Minister Balanutsa

The Cabinet of Ministers has dismissed the Deputy Minister of Defense Oleksandr Balanutsa, he will continue his diplomatic career.

The Ministry of Defense has said this in a statement, the Ukrainian News agency reports.

"At the request of the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, the government dismissed Oleksandr Balanutsa from the post of Deputy Minister of Defense. Rustem Umerov thanked Balanutsa for his work and his contribution to the work of the ministry. In the future, he will continue his diplomatic career," the message reads.

Balanutsa was appointed to the position of Deputy Minister of Defense on May 17, 2024 and was responsible for the direction of European integration.

43-year-old Balanutsa is a diplomat, he was the ambassador to Kuwait in 2019-2024.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on October 11, the Cabinet of Ministers appointed Deputy Minister of Strategic Industries Serhii Boiev as the Deputy Minister of Defense for European Integration.

The Cabinet of Ministers also appointed Serhii Melnyk, head of the Kharkiv defense and head of the Military Legal Institute, as Deputy Minister of Defense.

On October 1, the Cabinet of Ministers dismissed Deputy Defense Minister Stanislav Haider.

Earlier, the Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov announced on Facebook that he sent a petition to the Cabinet of Ministers for the dismissal of Deputy Minister of Defense Stanislav Haider (he is moving to the position of the head of the Minister's Office), Oleksandr Serhii, Yurii Dzhyhyr, as well as State Secretary Liudmyla Darahan.