Ukraine's Foreign Ministry introduces new structure: disarmament unit dropped, NATO unit added

08.07.2025, 14:49 eurointegration.com.ua

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has announced the introduction of a new structure for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which took effect on 7 July.

Sybiha stated on Facebook that the updated structure reflects the realities of war and the best European and global diplomatic practices.

Notably, the Foreign Ministry will no longer have a disarmament department.

"That was a thing of the past, but such a unit did exist at one point. Ukraine will never disarm again. So, in the new structure, we will have the Department for International Security and Ukraine’s Defence," the minister wrote.

The Foreign Ministry is also establishing a separate NATO Directorate. Previously, EU and NATO integration were combined under a single department – the EU and NATO Department, commonly known as "DEN".

"Now we will have a Department of the European Union and a NATO Directorate. The department will focus on Ukraine’s direct accession to the EU. The NATO Directorate will provide a new boost to our integration efforts towards full membership in the Alliance," he added.

A separate Sanctions Policy Directorate is being set up as well. Until now, sanctions-related matters had been dispersed across various departments. The new directorate will handle pressure-building measures, coordination of sanction packages, synchronisation, compliance analysis and closing loopholes.

Regional departments will include First and Second European Departments, Latin America and the Caribbean Department, Asia and the Pacific Department, Middle East and North Africa Department, and the Department for Africa and Regional African Organisations. The US and Canada Directorate will be split off from the Latin America and the Caribbean Department.

The ministry will also implement a functional division among deputy ministers: a first deputy minister overseeing key areas, a deputy minister for European policy, one for international security, another for global issues and public diplomacy, and one for digitalisation.

There will now be only one special envoy – for African affairs. The Middle East and North Africa will form a separate department.

New specialised directorates will also be formed – such as a Directorate for Hostile Countries. This will include not only Russia but also its allies such as North Korea and Belarus. These units will not manage bilateral relations but instead counter threats.

Central Asia will be handled by a standalone directorate.

The Economic Diplomacy and Recovery Department will be responsible not only for opening new markets, supporting Ukrainian exporters, and attracting investments, but also for coordinating international aid for Ukraine’s recovery.

The former Department for Ukrainian Diaspora will be replaced with the Department for Global Ukrainians and Humanitarian Cooperation.

The Department for International Law and Legal Resistance to Aggression will handle, among other things, bringing Russia and the Russians to justice for their war crimes.

The HR service will now be called the Personnel Department, focusing primarily on recruitment and motivation.

The Ukrainian Institute and the Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine will be elevated in status within the Foreign Ministry. The Academy is to be transformed into a full-fledged higher education institution.

New units will also be created, such as the Cyber Diplomacy Office and the Sector for Innovation and Artificial Intelligence.

On 21 June, Sybiha announced that Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry was preparing a structural reform aimed at adapting to modern security challenges. He also said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had made certain personnel decisions involving the heads of foreign missions, with changes expected in July.