Zelenskyy: Ukraine needs 1.5M soldiers until NATO membership is secured

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that until Ukraine joins NATO, it needs a 1.5-million-strong army to be able to confront Russia, Report informs via Ukrainska Pravda.

He made the remark at a press conference in Munich, Germany.

Zelenskyy stated that if Ukraine is not a member of NATO, it must collaborate with Europe to develop a security framework, and European leaders must acknowledge this.

"If we are not in NATO, or until we are, we must have an army capable of ensuring defense. [This means] proper weapons. NATO weapons. And a suitable number of soldiers. Ours, Ukrainian.

But what's this number? I'm giving you figures that the entire military and I understand. The army will be 1.5 million strong. One and one-half million!"

He pointed out that the Ukrainian Armed Forces are now almost half the size.

"We have around half the number of combat brigades [compared to Russia]. They have 220, while we currently have 110. Therefore, we need 220 brigades," Zelenskyy said.

He also added that maintaining such an army would require UAH 60 billion [approximately $1.4 billion] annually, compared to the current UAH 40 billion [around $960 million] a year. Therefore, it is crucial to consider who will finance this and how.

In January, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that the Ukrainian Armed Forces consisted of 880,000 soldiers defending the entire country.