The Ministry of Defense has disclosed the reasons for the dismissal of Marina Bezrukova from the post of Director of the Defense Procurement Agency (DPA).
Why the Ministry of Defense fired the DPA Director
The main reasons why the contract with the Director of the Defense Procurement Agency was not extended were:
- unfulfilled planned deliveries to the front;
- General Staff comments regarding poor procurement planning;
- communication problems and unjustified schedule transfers supplies.
– Numerous leaks of classified information are absolutely unacceptable and will be the subject of separate consideration by law enforcement agencies, – the press service of the Ministry of Defense noted.
The department also explained the legal aspects of the change in the leadership of AOZ. In particular, after the official formation of the Supervisory Board in the fall of 2024, the Agency was unable to properly formalize legal relations with all of its members. This led to a delay in its work.
Now watching
On January 20, 2025, one of the independent members of the Supervisory Board announced his withdrawal from the board, which upset the balance and effectiveness of its activities.
As a result, the composition of the board no longer met the requirements of the law, which provides for a majority of independent members.
On the same day, AOZ released a statement on the extension of the contract with Bezrukova, although there was no corresponding approval from the Ministry of Defense.
On January 21, the Ministry of Defense officially recommended not to extend the contract, but this information was not properly communicated to all members of the Supervisory Board.
Despite this, on the evening of January 21, AOZ again announced on Facebook that the contract had been unanimously extended. The Ministry of Defense states that this is contrary to the principles of transparency and consistency.
The department also noted that the Supervisory Board's decision was not officially communicated to the ministry, and that an additional agreement to extend the contract was concluded without proper approval. Not a single protocol of the Supervisory Board meetings was submitted to the Ministry of Defense either.
According to the department, when Marina Bezrukova was hired in January 2024, it was the Ministry of Defense that signed the contract with her.
According to the law, changing the terms of the contract required the consent of both parties, meaning that extending the contract without the consent of the Ministry of Defense was impossible.
On January 31, Marina Bezrukova's contract expired, and the Ministry of Defense officially confirmed that it would not be extended. Before that, she was removed from her post.
Marina Bezrukova's commentary
In her commentary to the Svoboda.Ranok project, Bezrukova stated that Defense Minister Rustem Umerov expressed support for her activities at meetings and had no complaints about the quality of her work.
Meanwhile, the situation around the conflict between the Ministry of Defense and the Defense Procurement Agency has attracted the attention of international partners. The G7 ambassadors called on the parties to resolve the situation as soon as possible.
Marina Bezrukova headed the AOZ in early 2024. The Defense Procurement Agency was created by the Ministry of Defense in 2022. AOZ is engaged in the supply of weapons for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
