Ukrainian Amazons

For the 11th year, Ukrainian women have been defending their homeland side by side with men. As of autumn 2024, 68,000 women are serving in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), meaning that during the war, this number has increased 2.5 times. So, how is the Ukrainian military permanently saying goodbye to Soviet traditions and becoming gender-balanced? What exactly are women doing on the front line? And what challenges do they face?

Women have always played an active role in Ukraine's defence, but the state never required them to do so. Currently, compulsory mobilisation of women is not being conducted – only those Ukrainian women with medical training are required to register for military service. Nevertheless, thousands of women are eager to join the AFU to help men destroy the enemy. Since 24 February 2024, the number of female servicemembers in Ukraine has increased by 12,000 (roughly 40%). Over 10,000 women are performing combat tasks directly on the front lines. Ukrainian women are keen to match their male counterparts in every aspect, readily taking on roles as machine gunners, snipers, grenade launchers, scouts, drivers, and armoured vehicle commanders, among others. Following the introduction of the mobilisation app "Reserve+", more than 200,000 Ukrainian women created profiles with their personal details in just the first month, expressing their readiness to take up arms.

But it wasn’t always this way. The full integration of women into the AFU was long hindered by two key factors: 1) gender-discriminatory laws, charters, procedures, and traditions; 2) the army’s lack of adaptation to women’s physical and anatomical needs. However, the situation is changing…

Gender Equality

The process began right after the Euromaidan, when Russia, exploiting the flight of the traitorous president Viktor Yanukovych, managed to annex Crimea without bloodshed and then sent its special forces, under the guise of “Donetsk tractor drivers”, to ignite hotspots in Eastern Ukraine. During the height of the Joint Forces Operation in 2018, thanks to the active efforts of the Women's Veteran Movement "Veteranka", legislative changes were introduced, allowing women to serve in the armed forces in 63 combat roles and even to receive officer ranks. Starting in 2019, women were also allowed to enrol in military academies. Yet this was no revolution – it was simply a return to longstanding traditions interrupted by Soviet occupation. In fact, at the beginning of the 20th century, Ukrainian Olena Stepaniv became the world’s first woman to receive an officer’s rank – a professional historian in civilian life, she served as a centurion in the Ukrainian Galician Army during Ukraine’s war for independence.

Source: Wikipedia

Legislative changes and the AFU’s transition to NATO standards have allowed many Ukrainian women not only to defend the country but also to build military careers. Although the largest group of women in the military consists of civilian personnel, about 20,000 Ukrainian women are soldiers, and over 5,000 hold leadership positions – both officer and sergeant ranks. Some have even achieved remarkable career success, such as Tetiana Ostashchenko, who long before the full-scale invasion, led the Medical Forces Command of the AFU and became the first woman in history to hold the rank of brigadier general.

However, not all women in the AFU joined to seek promotion – many are driven by a personal desire to destroy the enemy. For example, in the summer of last year, the Special Operations Forces announced that a woman had, for the first time, successfully passed the gruelling 7-month qualification course for the elite troops. The soldier, using the pseudonym "Number 68", trained alongside young athletic men, and her final exam was an exhausting march carrying a 23-kilogram rucksack over a 29-kilometre distance. To qualify for the Special Operations Forces, this must be completed in 4.5 hours on a road or 6 hours across rough terrain, a very demanding challenge – but "Number 68" succeeded.

Source: Novynarnia.com

With the onset of the full-scale invasion and air strikes on civilian populations, millions of Ukrainian mothers fled to Europe with their children, while their husbands joined the AFU. However, in some families, the roles were reversed. A prominent example is the family of Lieutenant Colonel Oksana Ivanets. She has been serving in the military for over 20 years, has a husband, a professional translator, and five children. After 24 February 2022, the father took the children to safety in Poland, while Oksana, who once worked in the press service of the border guards, became a military correspondent for the online media project "ArmyInform" run by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence. She frequently visits the hottest spots of the Russia-Ukraine war, documenting the situation with her reports and photo essays to show the world what is really happening. The burnout takes its toll, but Oksana is encouraged by the belief that her most important report – on the shelling of Moscow – is yet to come.

“I’ve noticed it’s becoming harder to find the right words, it’s harder to write. And reading is nearly impossible. But when the next missile strike hits, there’s not even a thought of not wanting to go there. I understand that I’m doing something important – bringing the truth about what the Russians are doing.”

However, war doesn’t just divide Ukrainian families – sometimes it brings them together. Anastasia Savka previously worked as an administrator at a car service centre, but then went to fight, becoming a sniper. During heavy assaults on the Zaporizhzhia front, she was injured by a mine and lost a leg. But upon arriving at a rehabilitation centre, she immediately met soldier Oleksiy Levchenko, who had also lost a limb. They decided to have lunch together, and soon found themselves falling in love. When Oleksiy proposed to Anastasia, she happily said "Yes!" Remarkably, despite being automatically discharged from the military due to their amputations, the couple decided to sign contracts with the AFU after their wedding, to continue defending their homeland.

Source: Instagram

Military Femininity

Despite the desire of Ukrainian women to fight the enemy on an equal footing with men, it cannot be ignored that, from a purely biological perspective, women differ significantly. Paradoxically, until 2023, there was no separate field uniform for female military personnel in the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) – women only had everyday and ceremonial attire. In Territorial Recruitment Centres, female recruits were simply issued male military uniforms (including men's underwear). It was inevitable that this practice would eventually come to an end. Last year, a summer field uniform specifically for women finally appeared, even for petite soldiers with a height of 146 cm. This uniform takes into account all the anatomical features of a woman’s body and even includes elastic areas suitable for pregnant women.

Source: Mindefence

Ukraine is also adapting military gear to women’s needs. In December 2023, the Ministry of Defence certified the first body armour for female soldiers, weighing from 10.5 kilograms (depending on size) and featuring anatomical adjustments, such as outwardly curved plates, narrow shoulders, and expanded lower sections. Subsequently, in response to feedback from female soldiers, another body armour model was created – this time with cushioning pads for a better fit.

Source: Mil.gov.ua

The international community is actively contributing to the adaptation of the AFU to women’s needs. In the summer of 2024, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced that NATO countries would allocate 7 million dollars to purchase 10,000 uniforms, boots, and gear specifically for Ukrainian servicewomen. Despite significant progress, challenges remain in adapting the army to the needs of women. For instance, the movement "Veteranka" succeeded in having female wards created in military hospitals, but the issue of military gynaecologists remains critical. Likewise, the problem of assault women soldiers dealing with heavy menstruation during intense combat operations is still unresolved.

Women Legends of the Russia-Ukraine War

Despite the difficulties Ukrainian women face during their years-long battle with the Russian enemy, more and more of them are joining the military, and some have already made such a significant contribution to the future victory that they have become true legends among the people.

Yana Zinkevych

Source: Instagram

From the very beginning, Ukrainian women have been joining the war effort as medics, largely thanks to the volunteer medical battalion "Hospitallers", which was founded in 2014 by then 18-year-old Yana Zinkevych. Over the past decade, her subordinates have saved the lives of around 3,000 soldiers, and Yana herself personally rescued about 200 wounded soldiers from the frontline in her first year of work. She would have continued, but in 2015, she was involved in a car accident that left her with a permanent disability. However, this tragedy only strengthened the already resilient young woman. She gave birth to a daughter, whom she is raising on her own, continues to command the "Hospitallers", and heads the Medical Department of the Ukrainian Volunteer Army under Commander Dmytro Yarosh. In addition, Zinkevych is active in politics and played a key role in legalising medical cannabis in Ukraine.

“We have ‘casevac’ crews – teams in pickup trucks that enter the 'zero' line under fire. This is the hardest work, and not everyone can handle it. There are also crews working on ‘medevacs’ – ambulances positioned one or two kilometres from the pickup crews. Then there are surgical crews operating at stabilisation points and providing aid to the wounded in hospitals or other locations, before transferring them further for evacuation by medevac.”

Maria Berlinska

Source: Hromadske

Maria Berlinska is the woman who has inspired more Ukrainian women to become aerial reconnaissance operators rather than medics. Today, every schoolchild around the world knows that no matter how many tanks the Russians produce, each one can be effectively destroyed by a relatively inexpensive drone. But that’s today – back at the beginning of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO), when Maria Berlinska, then a member of the volunteer battalion "Aidar", was promoting the development of drone production and training people to use them, many considered her ideas far-fetched. However, time has proven her right. Today, Berlinska continues to help develop drone-based aerial reconnaissance. She organised courses on drone piloting, which have already been completed by over 50,000 soldiers, and online courses on assembling drones at home have been taken by over 100,000 Ukrainians.

Kateryna "Ptashka" Polishchuk

Source: Instagram

As a paramedic with the "Hospitallers", Kateryna Polishchuk found herself in blockaded Mariupol at the onset of the full-scale invasion. Soon after, her beloved, Junior Sergeant Yaroslav Khrystyuk, was killed in combat, and then the hospital where she worked was bombed by the Russians. Kateryna, along with Ukrainian soldiers, ended up surrounded at "Azovstal". In the underground bunkers, she not only provided medical assistance to her comrades but also lifted their spirits with patriotic songs. In fact, these songs resonated not only with the soldiers – the entire country listened to them at that time.

Yulia "Taira" Paievska

Source: Facebook

Taira is a surname that, in medieval Japan, belonged to people of imperial descent but who were deprived of privileges. By performing military tasks, they eventually transformed into samurai, who displaced the former aristocracy and began to rule their lands independently. A similar situation occurred in Ukraine during the Revolution of Dignity, when ordinary people, deprived of rights in their own country, rose against the rule of pro-Russian oligarchs. So when designer, lover of Japanese culture, and president of the Ukrainian Aikido Federation Yulia Paievska began working as a paramedic on Kyiv’s Hrushevskogo Street, where security forces were shooting at Maidan protesters, the nickname "Taira" seemed to stick to her naturally. Later, during the ATO, she created her own evacuation team called "Taira's Angels", saved half a thousand soldiers, and even developed tactical medicine courses that were taken by thousands of Ukrainians. During the full-scale invasion, Taira was rescuing people in Mariupol before being captured by Russian forces, where she spent three horrific months before being returned to Ukraine.

"Blockaded Mariupol – it was endless... sorry, I can't think of another word... f*cking hell. But this experience of death, wounds, suffering – I consider it the most valuable experience of my life."

Tetiana Chornovol

A long time ago, journalist, politician, and civic activist Tetiana Chornovol decided that for her, Ukraine is above all. Since then, she has risked her life for her homeland seemingly a thousand times. In times when many journalists feared asking the gangster president Yanukovych any uncomfortable questions, she dared to sneak into his "Mezhyhirya" residence alone to report on it. During the Euromaidan, Chornovol, as a passionate activist, became a victim of brutal assault, nearly beaten to death. But she survived, only to soon defend Mariupol as part of the then-volunteer Azov battalion. Before the invasion, she completed anti-tank guided missile operator courses and eventually became a commander of a Ukrainian "Stugna" ATGM unit, continuing to defend her homeland today.

"I love the first power-up of the 'Stugna' monitor after it's set up. I survey all those spaces like a queen on a high mountain – the whole world is under my control. I've always loved climbing to the top of a mountain to view the entire world. Now, with the 'Stugna', I can do it 24/7. I enjoy it when all the pieces come together and I fire."

Yevheniya "Joan of Arc" Emerald

Among Ukrainian women, there are many snipers, but most of them, for understandable reasons, hide their faces when facing the camera. So when a sniper with model-like looks appeared during the full-scale invasion, who didn’t feel the need to conceal her face, she quickly became a media star. In civilian life, Yevheniya Emerald developed a jewellery business, but after 24 February 2022, she became a sniper under the pseudonym "Joan of Arc" in the National Police’s assault regiment "Safari". Yevheniya probably would still be fighting on the front lines with her .308 calibre rifle if it weren’t for her pregnancy, which forced her to transfer to civilian police work, become a mother, and assist the army from the rear.

Olha "The Witch" Bigar

In 2014, Donbas native Olha Bigar fled the war to Kyiv, where she started developing a legal business. But when, on the morning of 24 February 2022, she heard explosions outside her Kyiv apartment, she realised: there was no running away from war anymore, and she had to join others in giving the Russians a fitting response. In the battles near Kyiv, Bigar immediately displayed strong-willed and leadership qualities, so by the autumn of 2022, she was in Bakhmut as the commander of a rifle company, where she earned the nickname "The Witch of Bakhmut" due to the panic her name alone caused among Russian invaders. Today, she commands a mortar battery of six crews, which is also quite unique, as artillery is not a common branch for Ukrainian female service members.

Yaryna Chornohuz

In Ukraine, it often happens that in civilian life you are a talented poet, but then Putin sends hordes of bloody Russians to your country, and suddenly you’re a marine. However, Yaryna Chornohuz had already joined the active fight for independence long before the full-scale invasion, becoming an activist in the "Vidsich" movement against President Yanukovych's policies in the early 2010s. Later, she signed a contract and became a combat medic, and for the past three years, she has been fighting on the front lines as a scout in the Marine Battalion.

"When fighters see that you're physically and mentally capable and that you are useful, after a while they start treating you simply as a combat unit – just like a man."

Alina Mykhailova

The 30-year-old paramedic from Dnipro, Alina Mykhailova, like many others, joined the fight for independence during the Revolution of Dignity. She received her baptism of fire during the ATO, surviving a tank shelling and working on the front line in the battle for Donetsk airport. Having acquired paramedic skills as part of the "Hospitallers", Alina later created and led her own medical service "ULF" within the "Da Vinci Wolves" battalion. Alina was also the beloved of its legendary commander Dmytro "Da Vinci" Kotsiubailo, who died in the battles for Bakhmut.

"I'm always scared when our guys go into assault. Because I always know there will be casualties, there will be wounded. I'm always scared. You just have to be ready for it, and that comes with time, but it never leaves you."

Iryna "Cheka" Tsybukh

Iryna Tsybukh is another "Hospitaller" who joined the effort to save Ukrainian soldiers back in 2015. Alongside her work as a paramedic, Iryna also pursued journalism and served as a reform manager for "Public Broadcasting". Besides personally evacuating many wounded soldiers from the hottest areas of the front, she made reports, podcasts, and often gave comments to the media, spreading the truth about the war, which made her a media star. When the news of 25-year-old Iryna Tsybukh's death on the Kharkiv front appeared in late spring of this year, it shocked Ukrainians.

For the civilised world, the death of Iryna Tsybukh served as another grim reminder that Russian bullets, shells, mines, rockets, and bombs do not care where they hit – whether men or women. Their only aim is to strike and kill as many Ukrainians as possible, regardless of gender. Ukrainian women, alongside Ukrainian men, have proven countless times that they are ready to fight to the death for their country, but for victory, they desperately need one thing from Western partners: weapons – far, far more weapons.