Government will grant the status of ATO participant to volunteers – Minister

The Government intends to develop a procedure of granting ATO participant status to volunteers who were killed or wounded during the fighting in the east, but were not part of the official military formations. It was stated by Minister of Infrastructure Vladimir Omelyan, - reports the press-service of the Ministry.

Upon an initiative of the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladimir Omelyan the Government has decided to instruct the involved ministries and agencies to develop a separate procedure of granting the ATO participant status to volunteers who are not part of the official military units and who were killed or wounded during the fighting in the east of Ukraine, defending territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine. This decision was made at the Cabinet meeting on July 6^th, 2016.

"We have a paradoxical situation: people give their life or health to Ukraine, but they are not included in official statistics, and such people do not have any rights. It is needed to develop a procedure that at least those who were injured or killed in the East, defending Ukraine, can get the ATO participant status,"- said Omelyan.