You're reading: Poltorak: Ukrainian Defense Ministry to allocate Hr 14 billion for arms development in 2015

Hr 14 billion will be allocated from the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's budget of Hr 44.6 billion for the development of weapons for the army in 2015, and nearly Hr 2 billion will be spent on the training of Armed Forces personnel, Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak has said. 

“In 2015, the Defense Ministry is to get Hr 44.6 billion [from the state budget], including Hr 4.4 billion worth of state guarantees. The increase in spending compared with 2014 [when the defense budget was Hr 27.3 billion] is Hr 17.3 billion, or 1.6 times,” he said at a press conference in Kyiv on Jan. 9.

According to Poltorak, of this amount, Hr 28.7 billion will be used for the maintenance of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Hr 14 billion for arms development, and Hr 1.9 billion for the training of army personnel.