Ukraine will raise military wages with basic pay increasing by one-third to 30,000 hryvnias and frontline infantry salaries rising to about 300,000 hryvnias per month, according to government announcements on June 12 after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy met with cabinet ministers [1, 2]. Some reports indicate frontline pay may reach as high as 460,000 hryvnias monthly for select infantry personnel [3].
The military will offer fixed-term combat contracts of 10, 14, or 24 months, with some adding a six-month mobilization grace period after contracts end [1, 2, 3]. Zelenskiy said, "We agreed on how to increase the financial resilience of our defence and further transformation of the Ukrainian army. The cabinet of ministers will approve a specific mechanism, and the government should start the first new payments as early as June" [1].
Ukraine also plans to significantly expand recruitment of foreign fighters, who have numbered about 10,000 volunteers from over 70 countries since the war began [1, 2, 3]. Zelenskiy stated, "I have instructed to create significantly more opportunities to recruit foreign volunteers into the Ukrainian army, and there will be more recruitment channels in this regard" [1]. In his statement, he also said in Chinese, "我已经下令，大幅增加外国志愿者加入乌克兰军队的机会，并将增设更多招募渠道" (I have ordered a large increase in opportunities for foreign volunteers to join the Ukrainian military and more recruitment channels will be added) [2].
Mykhailo Fedorov, a senior official, emphasized that the goal is for foreign volunteers to fill 30% to 50% of frontline infantry and assault force positions to strengthen units and reduce Ukrainian casualties [3].
Ukraine secured a €90 billion loan from the European Union that enables a record 2026 defense budget of 4.4 trillion hryvnias (approximately $97 billion), with funds beginning to flow this month [1, 2]. This budget increase supports the pay hikes and expanded recruitment efforts.
Payments for the raised military wages and new combat contracts are expected to start disbursing in June 2026 [1, 2, 3]. This financial and recruitment drive aims to address continuing manpower shortages in Ukraine's armed forces amid the ongoing conflict.
