until 27 February 2014) had three female ministers. During the presidential election of 2010, then candidate Viktor Yanukovych refused to debate his female opponent prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko and justified it by saying that "a woman's place is in the kitchen". (Former) Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Lytvyn have also made comments that could be seen as insolent towards woman. A bill banning abortion (written by Andriy Shkil) was registered in the Verkhovna Rada at the request of the clergy of the Greek Catholic Church and the Vatican on 12 March 2012. Women in the Ukrainian military Women in Ukraine are allowed to join the military, but historically this has been limited to non-combatant roles: medic, cook, accountant, etc. As of July 2016, Ukrainian military forces began allowing women to participate in combatant roles including, but not limited to, machine gunner, military scout, and sniper. See also Women in the military by country#Ukraine References Further reading External links Ukraine