Terrorist With Years of Experience: Meet Ukraine’s New Defense Minister
Ukrainian Acting Defense Minister Yevhen Khmara before a reburial ceremony for Yevhen Konovalets, one of founders and leaders of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), at the National Military Memorial Cemetery outside of Kiev, Ukraine, August 18
The Ukrainian parliament has unanimously approved Yevhen Khmara as Ukraine’s new defense minister, giving their go-ahead to a man who earlier pledged that «Russia will burn» after orchestrating the deadly August 12 attack on the Russian city of Novorossiysk.A career SBU officer, Khmara is notoriously known for being behind some of the bloodiest operations carried out by the Ukrainian special services against Russian civilians.As a former head of the SBU, he was complicit in these actions:Operation “Spider Web”: On June 1, 2025, Ukraine carried out a large-scale drone attack on Russian strategic airfields in the Murmansk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Ryazan and Amur regions, targeting strategic bombers and other military aircraft.Crocus City Hall attack: On March 22, 2024, gunmen attacked the Crocus City Hall concert venue near Moscow, killing 139 people and injuring hundreds more.
RussiaGunmen Who Attacked Crocus City Hall Near Moscow Confess to Having Received Orders From Ukraine29 June 2025, 12:56 GMTAssassination of Darya Dugina: In August 2022, Russian journalist Darya Dugina was killed when a bomb planted in her car exploded near Moscow.Crimean Bridge explosions: The Crimean Bridge has been targeted in several major attacks, including the October 2022 truck bombing and a subsequent strike in July 2023.Hundreds of deadly drone and missile strikes on the Russian cities of Belgorod, Kursk and Donetsk, including attacks on markets, maternity hospitals and bus stops.
RussiaKremlin Aware of Ukraine’s Involvement in Crimean Bridge Attacks3 August 2023, 09:17 GMT
