The government appointed Reva as Deputy Minister of Defense for Digitalization - Bezuhla already mentioned his career as a comedian

The government appointed Major Oleksii Reva as Deputy Minister of Defense for Digitalization, noting his involvement in developing the applications Army+ and Reserve+. The new appointment has already been commented on by Member of Parliament Maryana Bezuha (Bezuhla), who reminded about the official’s past in the humor project Mamakhokhala and pointed to a lack of strategic experience.

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine notes that digital tools are an important element in increasing the efficiency of the Defense Forces, since they shorten decision-making time and give service members operational access to accurate and up-to-date information. Oleksii Reva has previously worked in the Ministry of Defense's IT sector: he participated in creating the Army+ application, the digital system for recording servicemen Impuls, and led project teams. The ministry believes that his experience and expertise will allow expanding digitalization of key processes in the military.

The appointment sparked a mixed reaction.

MP Maryana Bezuha responded to the appointment, noting that Oleksii Reva’s biography is interesting but he has little strategic experience. She recalled that Oleksii and his brother Ihor are screenwriters and comedians from Poltava, participants in Román Hrýshchuk’s Mamakhokhala project, who now serve as a member of Parliament from the Servant of the People party. Until 2020, the brothers performed in Russian as the duo Ne Rodstvenniki, and with the start of the full-scale invasion they joined the Armed Forces.

According to Bezuha, initially the brothers served in the Territorial Defense, then transferred to the 47-th brigade, where they gained experience organizing processes in a combat unit. After the events around the brigade, they joined Kateryna Chornohorenko’s team in the Ministry of Defense, where they were already engaged in digitalization.

“While working in the ministry, we also managed various projects. I worked on the Reserve+ project, and my brother worked on Army+,” Ihor Reva recalled.

Bezuha also said that later the brothers moved to the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense under Budanov, but Oleksii did not stay there long — deputy MP Khrystyna Hryshchuk’s assistant Ksenia Semenova, who heads the Kyiv Aviation Institute, made him head of the military department. After a short time in that position, Oleksii received the appointment as Deputy Minister of Defense, now responsible for all defense digitalization, including registries of conscripts, medical records, logistics, supply, and combat systems.

“Many excellent digitalization specialists ended up in the trenches and died or were maimed without the opportunity to use their skills, without reassignment, without justice,” noted MP Maryana Bezuha.

At the same time, the deputy noted that she considers Roman Hryshchuk one of the best deputies who has not been involved in dirty affairs, and people from his circle have found themselves in the Armed Forces, volunteering, or in education during the war. She stated that the Ministry of Defense is currently a structure scarred by replacing four ministers within a year, where beautiful faces are gathered without a clear defense plan. Bezuha added that Oleksii’s brother Ihor Reva is already Deputy Minister for Digitalization at the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport of Ukraine.

Earlier, Informator reported that Ukrainian drone and military equipment manufacturers could not receive payment for already delivered products under the E-Bal system. Due to legislative changes, the Verkhovna Rada’s defense committee blocked funding for the project.