By Olha Chepil | 2024-03-26

KYIV -- Before February 24, 2022, the day of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Tatyana Baden, a 37-year-old mother of two from Nikopol, had nothing to do with the army.

Baden had multiple responsibilities in a company that sold household supplies, including writing software, leading a large team and managing the company's production.

"When I first arrived at the enlistment office, I had never even held a gun before. ... We're a nation, and we are fighting for our independence," Baden, who now serves in the 14th Independent Regiment of Unmanned Aviation Systems, told Kontur.

Initially, she had a procurement role, looking for medicines, gasoline, clothing, food, drones and field radios -- everything her comrades in arms needed. When Baden saw the front line 500 meters away, the desire to fight grew even stronger.

Now she is an aerial reconnaissance code-breaker and operates in a classified combat zone.

She rarely goes home, once going five months without seeing her children.

"I really want the war to end before my children grow up and for them to live normally. I have to make every effort to make that happen," she said.

Baden knows exactly what she will do when the war ends someday.

"When the war ends, I know for certain that I will help rebuild our country, together with other Ukrainians," she said.

Frontline roles

Ukrainian women have been increasingly taking on frontline roles since the start of Russia's invasion two years ago.

About 65,000 Ukrainian women serve in military and civilian positions in the Ukrainian armed forces -- an approximately 30% increase since the start of the invasion, the New York Times reported in March, quoting the Defense Ministry.

Women now comprise about 7% of the Ukrainian military.

More than 4,000 women were combatants in combat zones, as of January, according to the Defense Ministry. That number was zero before the full-scale invasion.

Ukrainian women previously served primarily as medics, accountants, communication specialists and cooks, but now more and more women are becoming machine gunners and snipers or working in reconnaissance teams at the front.

The number of women either fighting or fulfilling other military roles is "unprecedented," Iryna Nikorak, a Ukrainian member of parliament (MP) and founder of the NGO Arm Women Now, told Kontur.

"Following Russia's full-scale invasion, thousands of young women lined up at enlistment offices ... And this trend continues to grow even now," Nikorak said.

"There really are more women in the Ukrainian army than in other armies," said Sergei Danilov, a scholar of international affairs and deputy director of the Kyiv Center for Middle Eastern Studies.

"But this is all explained by the nature of our war ... This is a genocidal war ... Women sense the existential threat to themselves and their children," he told Kontur.

In NATO, women comprise 0.3% to 20% of member-states' militaries, he said.

In the United States, 17.5% of active-duty troops are women, the Defense Department said in 2023.

Battlefield experience

Now Ukraine is becoming an example to other countries that have women in the military, said Danilov.

The Ukrainian military previously had only men's uniforms and shoes that were often too large for women, according to Baden.

In the army, shoe sizes "start from 38," said Baden. "But I wear size 35."

Servicewomen's clothing and underwear simply did not exist when the full-scale invasion began.

After the start of the invasion, Nikorak the MP analyzed the experiences of other countries and created Arm Women Now, which has been designing and providing women's uniforms.

"We've also developed a maternity uniform, like in the US Army, as well as thermal underwear and winter uniforms... Women's body armor vests with lightweight plates, women's combat boots -- it's all different from men's," said Nikorak.

She and her colleagues have submitted the designs to the Ministry of Defense.

In February, women in the Ukrainian military for the first time received a summer field uniform designed for them.

The uniform has a drawstring, collar and waistband tailored for women. They can adjust the waist themselves. The side slits in the women's tunic, which is shorter than men's, allow free movement while bending and squatting.

The battlefield experience gained by Ukrainian women will benefit other countries, said Nikorak.

"In this situation, Ukraine is a very educational example for NATO member countries," she added.

Ukraine's experience, gained "at such a [high] price, will be very useful" for NATO countries that someday launch gender reforms in military matters, she said.