Women soldiers make their mark in the Ukrainian army
On the front line just outside Bakhmut, Ukraine, a 32-year-old commander of a Ukrainian artillery platoon rocked to and fro in the passenger seat of a beatup Lada, as another soldier navigated the car through a thick forest, sometimes mowing down young trees. When they reached their destination, a small village less than two miles from Russian lines, all that was left were destroyed houses, their shattered roofs visible in the moonlight.
The commander, a female soldier who uses the call sign Witch, is a former lawyer who, along with two of her brothers and her mother, joined the military the day after Russia invaded in February 2022. Her first experience in combat was in the outskirts of Kyiv that year, and much of what she has learned about weapons systems since has been self-taught and on the fly.
Since early 2023, Witch has been with her platoon in the 241st Brigade in the area around Bakhmut, supervising all of the artillery systems. She is resolute about staying in the military even if the war ends. “People who want to join the armed forces must understand that it's a way of life,” she said.
As Ukraine struggles against fierce Russian assaults and its losses mount, there has been a surge of women who have enlisted, and they are increasingly volunteering for combat roles. The Ukrainian military has also made a concerted effort to recruit more women to fill its ranks.
About 65,000 women are currently serving in the Ukrainian armed forces, about a 30% increase since the war began. Roughly 45,000 serve as military personnel, and the rest hold civilian positions, according to the Defense Ministry. Just over 4,000 are in combat positions.
Unlike for Ukrainian men, there is no mandatory draft for women; however, women who have medical or pharmaceutical degrees must register for the service.
These women fill a growing number of positions in the military: combat medics in assault units; senior gunners; snipers; commanders of tank units and artillery batteries; and at least one co-pilot on a medevac team who dreams of becoming Ukraine's first female helicopter combat pilot. Dozens have been wounded in battle, and some have been killed or captured.
Along the front line, they operate under the same blanket of fear and hardship as male soldiers. In the dank, fortified shelter where Witch and one of her mortar teams spent most of their days, they waited in near darkness in the basement. Turning on lights would mean the crew could not quickly adjust their eyes to the dark if they had to go out and fire.
Until 2018, women were prohibited from holding combat positions in the Ukrainian military, though a few ignored the rules. Restrictions have been relaxed since Russia's invasion. The enlistment of thousands more female service members in the military has largely been seen as a welcome step for the country, whose bids to join NATO and the European Union are still under review.
The downside is that the military has not been able to adapt quickly enough to accommodate them. Female soldiers say there is still a dire lack of women's fatigues
and boots, correctly fitted body armor, and feminine hygiene products. That leaves women to acquire many items on their own.
As a result, organizations like Veteranka and Zemliachky have helped fill the gap by raising money to provide items tailored to women. But the problems go deeper, into issues of gender-based inequality and discrimination.
Many women serving in combat roles said that male soldiers and direct superiors largely did not discriminate by gender — though there are still sexual innuendoes and inappropriate comments.
Rather, it is senior commanders, often holdovers from the Soviet-era, who look down on women in the military, especially those in combat roles. In some cases, women are choosing to join newly formed brigades with younger, more dynamic commanders.
Claims of sexual harassment have also surfaced. According to some women, there have been no official channels for reporting harassment other than to battalion commanders, who then have to decide whether to follow up. In some cases, female soldiers said, witnesses may decline to testify for fear of repercussions.
Those impediments, as well as the potential for hurting their military careers, discourage women from reporting harassment, female soldiers said.