Ihor Tenyukh (23 May 1958-) was the Minister of Defense of Ukraine from 27 February to 25 March 2014, succeeding Pavlo Lebedyev and preceding Mykhailo Koval.
Biography[]
Ihor Tenyukh was born on 23 May 1958 in Stryi, Lviv Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union. He graduated from the Frunze Higher Naval School in Leningrad before he served as a torpedo boat officer, and he became a minesweeper commander in the Soviet Navy. Tenyukh was assigned as a liaison to the Indian Navy and Algerian Navy, and after Ukraine became independent, Tenyukh rose in the ranks of the new country's military. From 2006 to 2010 he was appointed the commander of the Ukrainian Navy, succeeding Ihor Knyaz and preceding Viktor Maksymov, but President Viktor Yanukovych removed him from the post. After the Ukrainian Revolution of 2014, President Oleksandr Turchynov made Tenyukh the Minister of Defense due to his military experience, and he served in that post during a time of great difficulty for Ukraine. Russia invaded the Crimea and occupied the peninsula without opposition from the Ukrainian military, and he was accused of indecision during the crisis. Tenyukh decided to resign from the Ministry of Defense on 25 March 2014, and Mykhailo Koval succeeded him.