The Verkhovna Rada has appointed Vasyl Malyuk as the head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak of the Voice (Holos) faction tells LB.ua.
"The relevant resolution 8425 was voted for by 324 MPs... The vote was attended by the President of Ukraine, the head of the Presidential Administration, the Prime Minister, the Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, and the Prosecutor General. In his speech, the President called on MPs to vote for Vasyl Malyuk. He emphasized his role in countering the aggression, returning and releasing our heroes," the MP said.
He also showed how MPs voted by faction: Servant of the People - 226 votes, European Solidarity - 0; Batkivshchyna - 18; Platform for Life and Peace - 19; For the Future - 12; Voice - 0; Dovira - 15; Restoration of Ukraine - 17; non-factional - 17.
President Zelenskyy, speaking in parliament, said: "Given this result and the fact that he has been successfully tested by the full-scale war, I consider his (Malyuk's) appointment to be fully justified. We are making personnel changes in the security sector to strengthen our defence."
At the same time, Malyuk assured: "I am a military man, and I have devoted my entire life to protecting the country. The Service will be cleansed of traitors. A special focus is on countering collaborators at all levels."
During the questioning, Solomiya Bobrovska, a member of the Voice party, asked about the SBU's further plans regarding the eradication of the Moscow church.
"The answer is that the SBU detects enemy agents in cassocks. 52 criminal proceedings and 19 suspicions, 6 court verdicts. There are also those whom we have exchanged: one enemy agent in a cassock was exchanged for 28 of our soldiers," reported Malyuk.
Malyuk has been acting head of the SBU since 18 July 2022. Since March last year, he was Ivan Bakanov's first deputy. The day before, on 17 July, Bakanov was removed from office.