Ukrainian army should adopt NATO standards as soon as possible - Poroshenko
KYIV. Nov 3 (Interfax) - The Ukrainian Armed Forces, including their artillery units, should switch to NATO standards in the near future, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said.
"I think that we should already be switching to the principles that prevail among our partners, members of NATO [...] Their key feature is accuracy. Ukrainian artillery meets these requirements in full today. We are confidently moving along this road," Poroshenko said in the village of Divychky in the Pereiaslav-Khmelnytskyi district of the Kyiv region on Friday on the occasion of the Day of Rocket Forces and Artillery.
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have received more than 600 pieces of missile and artillery equipment, over 250 night-vision devices, and other state-of-the-art weapons this year, the president said.
Poroshenko, however, acknowledged that the country's armed forces are facing multiple problems.
"This includes the problems of weapon maintenance and modernization, ammunition procurement, and the creation of centers to train artillery specialists to comply fully with the needs of the Ukrainian army and with NATO standards," he said.
Poroshenko called on Ukraine's Defense Ministry and military to further intensify the training of artillery and rocket troops.