Ukraine’s parliament confirmed Mykhailo Fedorov as defence minister and appointed Denys Shmyhal as energy minister and first deputy prime minister during a second attempt to fill the posts.

Ukraine’s parliament confirmed Mykhailo Fedorov as defence minister with 277 votes after an earlier attempt failed to schedule a vote. President Volodymyr Zelensky nominated Fedorov and said his most urgent task was improving air defence. Fedorov told parliament about a shortage of soldiers and said about 2 million men had evaded mobilization and 200,000 soldiers had deserted or left units without permission. Denys Shmyhal, dismissed a few days earlier as defence minister, was appointed energy minister and first deputy prime minister after previously falling 16 votes short of confirmation.