Ben Wallace, the defence secretary for Britain who had previously stated that he would leave his position in the upcoming cabinet reshuffle, has resigned, as confirmed by the prime minister's office on Thursday.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wrote a letter to Wallace, 53, praising the "dedication and skill" he brought to the position that saw him take the lead in the West's support for Ukraine's fight against Russia.
"You have served our country with distinction," Sunak wrote, adding that Wallace had seen "before others did what Vladimir Putin's true intentions in Ukraine were".
"Your determination to get Kyiv weaponry before the Russians attacked had a material effect on the ability of the Ukrainians to thwart the invasion."
Former army commander Wallace was the UK's choice to succeed Jens Stoltenberg as NATO secretary general, but he was unable to get key US support, and Stoltenberg has since extended his tenure as the alliance's leader.
He said after announcing his intention to resign in July that the decision was not because he thought the ruling Conservatives, currently trailing the main opposition Labour Party in the polls, would lose the next election, but because his constituency in northwest England was being scrapped under boundary changes, AFP reported.
Wallace has been in the UK parliament for 18 years and is the longest-serving Conservative defence secretary since Winston Churchill.
He was the only minister in a senior post to remain in the turbulent transition from his political ally Boris Johnson to the short-lived Liz Truss and then Sunak.
He was security minister under Theresa May before becoming defence secretary in 2019. He had enjoyed strong support among the Tories' grassroots membership and was regularly tipped to be party leader but never actively ran for the top job.
Furthermore, Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Grant Shapps will be replacing Wallace, according to the BBC, taking up his fifth cabinet job in less than a year, including roles as energy secretary, transport secretary and, briefly, home secretary.
Shapps also campaigned to replace Boris Johnson as prime minister in 2022 but dropped out to support Rishi Sunak.
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