Zelensky announced a large-scale military reform

Vladimir Zelensky announced a large-scale military reform on Ukraine. It is reported by Reuters.

According to the agency, it starts in June this year. The main goal is to solve acute problems with the shortage of personnel and fatigue of the military who have been in service since the beginning of the full—scale invasion of 2022, amid protracted peace talks with Russia.

The reform includes three key areas aimed at increasing the attractiveness of military service and creating a more transparent rotation system.

Increase in monetary security

As part of the reform, it is planned to significantly increase the salaries of military personnel, making it more equitable. For rear positions, the minimum level of monetary support should be at least UAH 30,000 (about $ 683 per month), which is about a third higher than current rates. For combat positions, salaries are promised to increase "at times." For commanders and officers, a "decent and significantly increased level of payments" is provided.

As a first step of the reform, the president instructed to prepare a schedule of increased payments from June.

Special contracts for infantry

Infantrymen who are on the front line in one of the most dangerous and difficult roles will receive special conditions. The goal: to increase the prestige of the infantry service, which often suffers from a lack of motivation. Special contracts are being introduced for infantrymen with payments in the amount of 250,000- 400,000 hryvnia (5,687 - 9,099 USD), depending on the performance of combat missions.

"A Ukrainian infantryman who holds the front line should feel that our state really respects him," Zelensky said.

Phased "demobilization" and a new contract system

This item solves one of the most painful problems of the Ukrainian army — the lack of clear terms of service and the impossibility of rotation for those mobilized from the first days of the war. It is planned to expand the contract system, which will provide "certain service life and understandable rotation logic." Starting from 2026, it will be possible to gradually dismiss those who were mobilized earlier on the basis of clear time criteria. This is a long-standing requirement of military personnel who often serve without rotation for months.

Terms of implementation

May 2026: coordination of all key details of the reform. June 2026: the beginning of the reform and the expectation of the first results, especially in the field of financial security.

Next week, Zelensky expects a report on concrete steps to implement the changes.

The reform was initiated against the backdrop of a delay in peace talks mediated by the United States. Zelensky said that Ukraine should be ready to continue fighting if an agreement is not reached.

The new Defense Minister Mikhail Fedorov, appointed in January to improve mobilization and combat evasion, called these changes a "systemic" transformation of the army.