As of April 1, more than five thousand women are serving on the front lines, most of them serving in the Ukrainian Ground Forces.

Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Natalia Kalmykova announced this.

She noted that since 2021, the number of women in the Armed Forces of Ukraine had increased by 40%.

According to Kalmykova, as of April 1, 67,285 women serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, of whom 47,569 are military personnel.

“Ukraine is creating conditions to strengthen the role of women in the army. Our recruiting centers have all the conditions to attract women to the army. Today, 15% of the candidates undergoing the recruitment procedure are women. Any position in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is open to them,” she said.

Kalmykova also said that the progressive changes in legislation that Ukraine was implementing today were also due to the energy and efforts of dozens of female veterans’ organizations and volunteers.

The Deputy Defense Minister added that there were three main steps to further implement the principle of equal opportunities in the Ukrainian army:

• raising gender awareness among military personnel;
• increasing the number of women in leadership positions in the Armed Forces;
• creating an inclusive environment for female servicewomen.

In May, Militarnyi reported that the State Logistics Operator had purchased women’s summer field uniforms worth about UAH 130 million.

The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine reported that more than 90% of the purchased kits had already been delivered to military units.

The purchase was made within the framework of the first tenders of the State Logistics Operator agency for the purchase of women’s uniforms.

According to the Ministry of Defense, women’s military clothing differs from men’s in terms of shape and complexity of cut.

The sets for defenders are available in a range of sizes from 40 to 64. They are designed for heights from 146 to 188 cm.

For the first time, the Armed Forces of Ukraine began receiving clothing sets in February 2024. Back then, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine issued 50,000 summer field suits. Previously, a second sample of body armor adapted to the peculiarities of the female body structure was certified by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.