The acting head, Andrey Antonenko, was deputy head of the Center for Strategic Communications.
Antonenko himself, the former head of the main editorial board of the “Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security” at Ukrinform and deputy head of the Igor Solovey Center, reported this to “Detector Media” in a comment.
Antonenko said that the Center will receive funding from the state budget.
“The funding is very modest, though. Therefore, we are counting on continuing cooperation with international partners,” he noted.
According to Antonenko, the staffing table has not yet been formed – this is a task for the coming weeks.
What preceded
- On December 6, 2024, the Ministry of Culture issued an order to rename the state institution “Scientific Center for Tourism Development” to the state institution “Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security.” Sergey Bykov was appointed its head.
- Following Bykov's appointment and the meeting between the Deputy Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications for European Integration Andrei Nadjos and the head of the Stratcom Center Igor Solovey, it became known that the MKSC proposed that all members of the Center's team move to the newly created structure. Also on December 7, it became known that the MKSC announced an open competition to determine the new head of the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security after the re-registration procedure is completed.
- Bykov's appointment drew criticism from the medical community, as he had collaborated as a political strategist with various political parties, in particular, providing information support for Viktor Medvedchuk's initiatives. Bykov called it a coordinated attack and denied the work of a traitor. But on December 7, 2024, the Minister of Culture and Strategic Communications announced that Bykov had been fired.
- On December 8, 2024, members of the Media Movement, public organizations working in the field of media and communications, as well as representatives of the media, communications and expert communities called on the leadership of the MKSK to make balanced, transparent and responsible decisions, as well as an open professional dialogue in the process of reorganizing the Center for Strategic Communications and Information Security.
- Where the renaming of the “Scientific Center for Tourism” was already the Center for Strategic Communications. According to its website, it was created jointly by government efforts and the efforts of civil society.