The acting head of the Security Service of Ukraine will be Major General Yevheniy Khmara. He currently holds the position of head of the SBU's Special Operations Center "A" (known as the Alpha special unit).
Points of attention
- Major General Yevheniy Khmara has been appointed as the acting head of the Security Service of Ukraine following the dismissal of the previous head.
- Khmara is known for his significant achievements in special operations and rapid professional growth within the SBU.
- President Zelenskyy appointed Khmara to oversee the development of asymmetric operations, aiming to make Ukraine's security forces one of the strongest in the world.
Zelenskyy appointed Yevheniy Khmara to temporarily act as head of the SBU
This is stated in Presidential Decree No. 19/2026 of January 5.
The decision to appoint the acting head was made after Vasyl Malyuk left the post of head of the SBU.
Earlier today, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that he had suggested that Malyuk focus on combat work and the development of the direction of asymmetric operations, which should become "the strongest in the world."
Yevhen Khmara's career in the SBU is marked by rapid professional growth and significant achievements in the field of special operations.
On April 14, 2023, by decree of the President of Ukraine, he was appointed Head of the Special Operations Center, which is responsible for combating terrorism and protecting participants in criminal proceedings and law enforcement officers.
A year later, on August 24, 2023, Khmara received the rank of brigadier general, and on June 23, 2024, he was awarded the rank of major general.
On August 25, 2025, the President of Ukraine appointed Yevhen Khmara as the head of the SBU's Special Operations Center "A", a key unit of the intelligence service responsible for high-profile and asymmetric operations against the enemy.
Among Khmara's most famous combat operations is the leadership of the 2023 special operation to liberate Zmiiniy Island from the occupiers, which became one of the landmark successes of Ukrainian special forces.
