KIEV, November 30 (AVN) - The Ukrainian Defence Ministry and other interested bodies are drafting a programme of prospective army development and reform for the period until 2010, Defence Minister Alexander Kuzmuk said on Tuesday.
By 2005, the number of servicemen who have signed military contracts will reach 50,000, Kuzmuk told reporters. They will occupy almost all low-level command posts, the minister said, adding that the Ukrainian army currently has about 28,000 soldiers and officers serving under contracts.
Ukrainian parliament has recently passed a series of laws regulating the army's economic activity. Asked by the Military News Agency to comment on the prospects of the economy's military sector, Kuzmuk said that the Defence Ministry currently has 57 repair plants. They all stand on solid ground and their production has grown 40 to 50 percent this year.
The Ukrainian army has gained 244 million grivyas (about 48 million U.S. dollars) from various economic activities, which is 36 million grivnyas (about 7.2 million dollars) more than planned, Kuzmuk stressed. The money will be spent on research and design works, modernisation of military equipment and construction of residential blocks. As much as 20,000 servicemen have received private flats this year, he added.