Ukraine’s defense ministry approves first combat vest for women soldiers

Ukraine's defense ministry has finally certified the first bulletproof vest for women soldiers. The vest is a joint product made by the Ukrainian Armor military brand.

What is the problem?

While Ukraine only conscripts men, over 62,000 women voluntarily serve in Ukraine's forces, 5,000 of whom have active combat roles.

"Since women have narrower shoulders and wider pelvis than men, it was uncomfortable for the servicewomen to handle weapons in the 'male' version of the body armor," the developers said.

What is the solution?

The women's vest was approved after two stages of testing. After the first field testing stage, the vest was modified to fit the female body.

The newly approved vest features a curved armor plate and narrower shoulders to provide a better fit for female soldiers and is made domestically by the company Ukrainian Armor.

How does it work?

The women's version has an outwardly curved armor plate for convenience. Otherwise, the bulletproof vest, which weighs 10.5 kilograms depending on the size and configuration, does not differ from the previously approved general military bulletproof vest.

The defense ministry added that the vest became available for centralized procurement after certification.

The Defense Ministry said it must first ascertain how many vests are needed and then arrange procurement but did not indicate a timeline for this.

The Defense Ministry approved a standard sample of summer field uniforms for female soldiers in August, 18 months into the full-scale invasion.

Work on the introduction of women's field uniforms began back in 2022 on the instructions of the Minister and at the initiative of the Arm Women Now project, the Forma Two public initiative, and with the participation of Tetiana Lomakina, Advisor to the Presidential Commissioner for Accessibility.

During the development of the form, numerous working group meetings, developments, and testing of the form took place.