Ukraine is set to appoint a new defense minister after President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the departure of Oleksii Reznikov on Sunday, reports TurkicWorld with the reference to Daily Sabah.

The announcement, calling for "new approaches" a year and a half into Russia's invasion, came hours after Ukraine fought off an attack by Russian drones in the southern Odessa region Sunday that hit a Danube port on the border with NATO member Romania.

"Oleksii Reznikov has been through more than 550 days of full-scale war," Zelenskyy said in his daily evening address.

"I believe that the ministry needs new approaches and other formats of interaction with both the military and society at large."

He nominated Rustem Umerov, a Crimean Tatar who has been head of the State Property Fund since last year, to replace Reznikov – subject to approval by Ukraine's parliament.

"Now Rustem Umerov should be the head of the (defense) ministry," Zelenskyy said in his evening address. "I expect parliament to support this candidate."

News of Reznikov's removal comes with Kyiv's counteroffensive underway and Ukraine's general push against corruption in response to EU requests.

It also paves the way for a major change in Ukraine's defense circles.

Reznikov, a 57-year-old lawyer with little military experience, has become one of the best-known faces of Kyiv's war effort.

During the Russian invasion, Ukraine's Defense Ministry has been rocked by some corruption scandals.

In January, Reznikov kept his job but his deputy was forced to resign after the Defense Ministry was accused of signing food contracts at prices two to three times higher than current rates for basic foodstuffs.