MOSCOW, July 20. /TASS/. Vladimir Zelensky appointed former Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov to the post of the secretary of the National Security and Defense Council to vest him with the status required for further negotiations with Russia, a prominent Ukrainian lawmaker said.

Umerov, who headed the Defense Ministry since September 2023, lost his post when the entire government resigned. The country’s new defense minister is former Prime Minister Denis Shmygal. Umerov is also Ukraine’s chief negotiator with Russia. So far, there have been no decree to reshuffle Ukraine’s negotiation team. Zelensky appointed Umerov to the post of the national security council secretary on July 18.

"I think that, by doing this, they have given him the status that enables him to continue negotiations," Secretary of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence Roman Kostenko told Ukraine’s NV radio. "He will continue to negotiate, <…> so they have appointed him to a proper position."

According to the lawmaker, the post of the defense minister implies that "your first concern is defense," not negotiations.

On July 19, Zelensky said that Umerov suggested Russia to hold a new round of talks next week. A source told TASS that no timeframes are known at this point, they are yet to be agreed.