Baku-APA. Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych on Monday signed a decree to abolish compulsory military service in 2014 and the country moves to a system of recruiting contract personnel.
The switchover is part of Ukraine's armed forces reform, which aimed at creating effective and compact armed forces by 2018.
"At present, work with weapons and military equipment requires a very high professional level. So the army should be professional, " Yanukovych said during a meeting with women who received the Hero of Ukraine title.
The overhaul of the country's armed forces is needed to ensure the country's safety, Yanukovych said.
Currently, some 60 percent of Ukraine's army personnel are on contract.
Ukraine plans to spend about 16.3 billion U.S. dollars over the next five years to restructure its armed forces. Under the reform, the Defense Ministry aims to reduce the size of the military from 180,000 to 70,000 soldiers, APA reports quoting Xinhua
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