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Ukraine to reduce army to 130 thousand men

The reduction will save close to 90 million dollars of appropriations and the remaining military will have their wages doubled

KIEV, January 17 (Itar-Tass) —— Ukraine will reduce its army by another 15-20 percent to 130 thousand men in five years, Defense Minister Mikhail Yezhel told top military brass on Monday.

“The reform is a complicated, responsible, and painstaking process. It is necessary to preserve the existing potential to the maximum during the reduction. Ukraine has to get the armed forces of a new type by 2017,” the defense ministry press service quoted him as saying.

Yezhel said the reduction will save close to 90 million dollars of appropriations and the remaining military will have their wages doubled.

As for December 31, 2011 the Ukrainian armed forces numbered 192 thousand people, including 144 thousand servicemen.

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