Reznikov said Ukraine should study countries facing similar security challenges, citing Israel as an example where women serve alongside men. He said adopting a universal conscription model would substantially increase the country’s mobilization resources.
“Gender equality means that women should serve in the military too,” the former minister said.
“That immediately would double our mobilization resource. Then you can clearly see which military positions and specialties can easily be filled by women — they don’t have to go to the battlefield. They fill many rear positions, logistics and support, and men can be moved from rear positions closer to the front. The question is whether society is ready to say, like Israel, that we can survive only if everyone accepts that they must defend Ukraine.”
Reznikov said any change should start not with coercion but with an information campaign to build public understanding of the need for shared national defense burden.
“If that attitude begins to dominate society, the Verkhovna Rada [Ukrainian parliament] can easily enter the session hall, press the buttons, and approve it,” he said.
He also noted that standards for women’s military uniforms and body armor were first approved during his tenure.
In March, then-commander in chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said the
Ukrainian armed forces included 75,000 women.