The decree was published on the President’s Office website.
The position will allow Umerov to continue coordinating work with Ukraine’s partners and efforts to bring the war to an end, Zelenskyy said during the annual meeting of Ukrainian ambassadors in Kyiv, Interfax-Ukraine reported.
“Umerov will be appointed head of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
Umerov served as Ukraine’s defense minister from 2023 to 2025 before Zelenskyy appointed him secretary of the National Security and Defense Council.
Media outlets had previously reported that the president had decided to appoint Umerov to lead the Foreign Intelligence Service.
Zelenskyy had offered former Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko the position of National Security and Defense Council secretary.
The president outlined the future responsibilities of Klymenko and Umerov within the council on July 24, saying its operating principles and areas of responsibility had been updated.
Umerov was expected to focus on negotiations with international partners, advancing security cooperation and strengthening ties between the intelligence communities of Ukraine and allied countries, Zelenskyy said.
He was also tasked with implementing initiatives including the Drone Deals program and Ukraine’s Freya antiballistic shield.
Zelenskyy said on July 23 that he was considering which new position Umerov could hold.
Umerov had served as National Security and Defense Council secretary since July 2025. Zelenskyy announced on July 17 that Klymenko, who previously headed Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, would take over the position.
Klymenko served as interior minister beginning in February 2023 following the death of Denys Monastyrskyi.
Umerov had also been considered one of the leading candidates to replace Olha Stefanishyna as Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, LIGA.net previously reported, citing sources in the President’s Office.