Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky signed on July 29 two bills increasing the limit of Armed Forces active duty personnel from 250,000 to 261,000 and creating a brand new “national resistance” framework for the country.
“These laws are directly related to Special Operations Forces,” Zelensky said during an improvised signing ceremony in Zhytomyr Oblast.
With these laws, Special Operations Forces “will be able to build up their ranks with new operatives and boost their contribution to enhancing defense capabilities of our nation,” the president said.
On July 29, Ukraine’s Special Operations Forces, one of five uniformed military branches, celebrated its “Professional Day,” a holiday to celebrate the creation of this branch.
Out of the 11,000 new vacancies for the Armed Forces, 10,000 will go to the newly-created territorial defense corps while 1,000 will be added to Special Operations Forces.
Territorial defense forces are to be created as a standalone military branch separate from the regular standing army and operating with its own budget.
The new “national resistance” legislation provides for a set of important measures aimed at developing territorial defense, as well as introducing a new civil defense grip in the case of a major war or foreign occupation, according to Zelensky.
The presidential bills, an attempt to create a new territorial defense grid in the country, were overwhelmingly endorsed by the Rada in their second reading on July 14.
