68,000 women serve and work in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, including more than 48,000 servicewomen. About 5,000 women are deployed in the combat zone. State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Liudmyla Darahan spoke about this at an international seminar on gender equality held as part of the Richelieu Forum for Public Service in Kyiv.
In July 2023 there were around 60,000 women in the AFU, including 42,000 female soldiers, said then-Deputy Minister of Defence Hanna Maliar. The ratio of women to the total number of soldiers in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is one of the highest in the world.
The number of women in the AFU is constantly increasing. Many of them stepped up to defend the country after Russia launched a war in eastern Ukraine in 2014, while others mobilised after the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022. With this in mind, the Ministry of Defence is implementing systemic changes to its gender policy. For example, women were allowed to serve in combat specialities, and summer women's military uniforms were introduced.
Female soldiers take part in combat operations, hold command positions and are involved in peacekeeping missions in other countries. "Today, women are everywhere — holding the rear, working in difficult positions, fighting in the ranks of the AFU. They are proving that people should be judged by their abilities, efficiency and intelligence, not by their gender," said Liudmyla Darahan.
NAKO consistently monitors the implementation of women's right to serve in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. For example, our sociological research "Access to Military Education for Women in Ukraine" describes opportunities for education and training.
