The Ukrainian Minister of Defense Oleksii Reznikov announced today that he had submitted his resignation to parliament, a day after President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that he would replace himafter a series of scandals in the ministry.

“I have submitted my letter of resignation to Ruslan Stephanchuk, Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament,” Reznikov, who has been at the Ministry of Defense since November 2021, wrote on the X platform.

“It has been my honor to serve the Ukrainian people and work for the Ukrainian military for the past 22 months, the most difficult period in Ukraine’s modern history,” he added.

In his nightly videotaped address to the nation, Zelensky said he would this week ask the country’s parliament to oust Reznikov and replace him with Rustem Umerovthe head of the country’s privatization fund.

The minister’s replacement must be approved by parliament and is unlikely to be supported by a majority. Zelensky said he expects parliament to also approve Umerov’s appointment.

The 41-year-old former MP Rustem Umerov is a Crimean Tatar and was appointed head of the State Property Fund in September 2022.

He has played a key role in sensitive wartime negotiations, for example the Black Sea Grain Export Agreement.