Women in the Ukrainian army will have a unified female uniform

That is, it already, as it were, was, but only for parades. So, by order of the Ministry of Defense No. 238, a single uniform standard was approved - for men. For women, only a tunic, skirt and shoes ... with heels were provided.

And this despite the fact that at present about 57,000 women serve in the defense industry and the army. Of these, about 32 thousand are in the combat zone. Among them are paramedics, gunners, snipers, scouts, company and platoon commanders. They are given a male uniform, which has to be adjusted to fit the female figure - altered and even used with pins. There is also a lack of shoes of small sizes and bulletproof vests, taking into account the peculiarities of the female figure.

The parade takes place once a year, and women have been on the collision line every day since 2014, Irina Nikorak, a member of the Kiev City Council, tells BBC news Ukraine .

Now Irina Nikorak is promoting the initiative of women's uniforms for Ukrainian servicemen.

Men's sizes and styles of clothing do not correspond to women's, explains Nikorak. - Trousers can fit well in the hips, but will be too big in the waist, the tunics have long sleeves, the shoulder goes down almost to the elbow.

That is why the volunteer project Arm Women Now (Let's Arm Women Now) set out to provide Ukrainian defenders with a high-quality and functional form.

The author of the project, deputy Irina Nikorak, says that the first batch of trousers, tunics and tactical underwear will be given to the defenders free of charge this week in order to test and make sure that the uniform is functional and comfortable

Patterns for clothes were developed on the basis of the female uniform of the US Army, which is considered one of the most comfortable. High-quality "pixel" was ordered in Poland.

The Arm Women Now project is funded by charitable contributions and through auctions involving showbiz stars and athletes. Volunteers have already managed to collect UAH 400,000, which was enough to sew 300 sets.

The second volunteer group dealing with the problem of women's uniforms is the project of First Lady Olena Zelenska "Barrier Free".

The Ministry of Defense held a meeting with both groups. The main proposals from the ministry are to test experimental samples in the field.

Volunteers were also asked to analyze the types of figures in order to individually select clothes for women at the first stages. The Ministry of Defense says that they are also discussing the creation of women's underwear.