On Thursday, October 9, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine supported in the first reading draft law No. 12349 on the creation of the Cyber Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
This was announced by MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak.
A total of 255 lawmakers voted in favor of the initiative.
The new branch of the military will be responsible for ensuring the cyber defense of the state, protecting military and government information systems, and responding to cyberattacks. In addition, the bill provides for the formation of a cyber reserve — units and specialists capable of joining the country’s cyber defense in case of threats.
The Cyber Forces will be directly subordinate to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
To remind, after the start of the full-scale war, cyber troops have already been operating within the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Under a presidential decree dated August 26, 2021, as well as decisions of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) and directives of the Ministry of Defense and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the Cyber Forces began to be formed as a separate branch of Ukraine’s military.
On December 19, 2024, the Verkhovna Rada registered draft law No. 12349 “On the Cyber Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.”
On March 20, 2025, the parliamentary Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence reviewed the draft law and recommended it for the first reading and approval as a basis.
After that, the Minister of Defense and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces defined the tasks, structure, and timeline for forming the Cyber Forces Command and its subordinate military units.
The Main Directorate of Electronic and Cyber Warfare of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was appointed as the body responsible for establishing the Cyber Forces.
Tags: cyber forces
