KIEV: The Ukrainian Parliament has approved a legislation to appoint Rustem Umerov as the country's new Defence Minister, lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak said.

Umerov's nomination, which was submitted by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, was supported by 338 lawmakers in the 450-seat Assembly, Zheleznyak added on Wednesday in a post on Telegram.

Umerov, 41, served as the head of the country's main privatisation fund between September 2022 and September 2023, Xinhua news agency reported.