Decent salaries for military servicemen should be a priority for the state and reflected in the 2019 national budget, Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov has said.
NSDC’s press service said on Friday the subject was discussed during a meeting with Defense Ministry officials, including Joint Forces Operation (JFO) officers, heads of Ukraine’s State Border Service, National Police and National Guard.
Turchynov said soldiers’ salaries should “increase commensurately with salaries of officials and other salaried government workers.”
“Now the budget is being formed for the next year. Accordingly, NSDC is drafting the country’s defense budget,” Turchynov said. He expressed hope that the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, would support NSDC’s defense budget request for 2019.
Improving material and technical support for military personnel and other law enforcement agencies was discussed during the meeting, he said.
