Kostyantyn Morozov

Kostyantyn Petrovych Morozov (born 3 June 1944) is a Ukrainian government official and former Soviet military officer, who served as the first Minister of Defence of Ukraine starting from 1991. Morozov also briefly served as Ukraine's ambassador to Iran in 2000-2001 and as ambassador to NATO from 2005 to 2007. In his latter office, Morozov was a key figure in establishing Ukraine's policy of seeking to join NATO.

Biography Early life and Soviet service Kostyantyn Morozov was born in a village of Lozova Pavlivka (today part of Brianka, in Luhansk Oblast) on 3 June 1944. His father, Petro Stepanovych Morozov, was an ethnically Russian mine electrician, and his mother was an ethnically Ukrainian school teacher. Petro Stepanovych died on the job when Kostyantyn was around 10 years old.

Morozov graduated from the Hrytsevych Higher Military Aviation College for the Air Force (later Ivan Kozhedub National University of the Air Force) for military pilots in Kharkiv in 1967, after which he served in the Soviet Air Forces' Northern Group. In 1975, Morozov graduated from the Gagarin Air Force Academy. Afterwards, Morozov held several commanding positions across the Soviet Union. From 1984 to 1986, he studied at and graduated from the Voroshilov Military Academy of General Staff of the Soviet Armed Forces (later Military Academy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia). During that period, Morozov also served as an air army chief of staff in Smolensk, and in 1988 was transferred to the same position of the 17th Air Army stationed in Kyiv. In 1990, Morozov was appointed the commander of that army.

Minister of Defence Soon after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, Morozov was appointed by the Verkhovna Rada as the first Minister of Defence of independent Ukraine on 3 September 1991. He served in this position in the Fokin government and the Kuchma government. A week after his appointment, Morozov declared Ukraine's intention to create its own armed force during a meeting with Soviet defence minister Yevgeny Shaposhnikov.

On his post, Morozov promoted the democratization of armed forces and supported the vision of the People's Council fraction in respect to the development of Ukrainian military. Due to his position regarding the fate of the Black Sea Fleet, Morozov voluntarily resigned from his post on 4 October 1993.

After his dismissal from the ministry and the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Morozov participated in various public activities: a Coordination Council member of the Ukrainian Intelligentsia Congress, leader of the electoral public organization "Democratic Association Ukraine", coordinator of democratic parties of Ukraine, a member of the Ukrainian-American consulting committee in policy development. In 1994-95, he studied English, foundations of state administration, and international security policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government (Harvard University).

From 2000 to 2001, Morozov was the Ambassador of Ukraine to Iran. In 2003, Morozov graduated from the Open International University of Human Development "Ukraine". From 2005 to 2007, he headed the Ukraine mission to NATO, but resigned following a change in government policy towards Ukrainian integration into NATO.

Honours Soviet Union Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", 3rd Class (1982) Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR", 2nd Class (1990)

Ukraine Order for Courage, 3rd Class (1996)