Zelensky replaces State Border Guard's acting chief for 2nd time in 2026
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President Volodymyr Zelensky appointed Vadym Chenchyk as the new acting head of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service on Aug. 31, according to decrees published on the Presidential Office's website.
Chenchyk replaced Valerii Vavryniuk, who had served as acting chief since his appointment in January 2026. Zelensky has now replaced the acting head for the second time this year without appointing a permanent chief.
Chenchyk was deputy head of the State Border Guard Service from 2019 to 2026, after previously serving as acting director of the agency's Operational Activities Department, which is responsible for preventing and combating offenses at the state border, including smuggling, illegal migration, and terrorism.
Chenchyk's predecessor, Vavryniuk, took over as head of the agency on Jan. 4 after then-chief Serhii Deineko, who had led the State Border Guard Service since 2019, came under investigation and was dismissed.
In 2023 border guards received at least 204,000 euros (nearly $237,000) for facilitating the smuggling of cigarettes through the border between Ukraine and the European Union, Ukraine's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) said.
The smugglers used vehicles with fake diplomatic license plates whose passengers were relatives of Ukrainian diplomats, according to the NABU. Their diplomatic passports enabled them to cross the border without inspections, the bureau said.
Spokesperson for the border service, Andrii Demchenko, told Suspilne on Feb. 6 was dismissed from military service by order dated Feb. 2. The exact reason for the dismissal was not specified.
