Following the proposal of Minister of Defence Rustem Umerov, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has appointed Brigadier General of Justice Serhii Melnyk as Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine.

Serhii Melnyk was born on July 12, 1977, in Vinnytsia Oblast. In 1999, he earned his degree from the Kharkiv Military University, and soon after, he started working in key roles at the Military Law Faculty of the Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University. In 2009, he earned his second degree.

Since 1999, he has served in various positions in the Air Defence Brigades.

In November 2019, he took on the role of director of the Institute of Military Law of the Yaroslav Mudryi National Law University.

In 2022, Serhii Melnyk successfully completed the Senior Management of Strategic Level Course (L-4) at the National Defense University of Ukraine.

Since the onset of the large-scale invasion, he was in charge of the defense of the city of Kharkiv.

The newly appointed Deputy Minister is a Doctor of Law and a Military Law Professor, has been honored as a Ukrainian Educator of Distinction, and is a winner of Ukraine's State Prize in Education.