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Anti-Terrorist Operation (ATO) participant status has been granted to 177,655 soldiers of the Ukrainian armed forces, spokesman for the Defense Ministry Dmytro Hutsuliak said at a briefing in Kyiv on Friday, according to a UNIAN correspondent.
"The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine continues to encourage military personnel who distinguished themselves during the execution of tasks to defend the homeland in the Anti-Terrorist Operation zone. This month, 135 ATO participants received departmental awards and valuable gifts from the Defense Ministry, while more than 3,000 people were granted the status of combatants," he said.
Read alsoOver 127,100 soldiers granted ATO participant statusSince the beginning of the Anti-Terrorist Operation, 11,000 participants received state awards, while 15,580 received awards of the Ministry of Defense.