Financing of military hospitals and military field medicine of the Ukrainian army in 2017 significantly increased, Ukrainian Defense Minister Stepan Poltorak has said.

"At the beginning of the ATO [Anti-Terrorist Operation in eastern Ukraine] we encountered lots of problems, including medical support: the lack of equipment, medicines, vehicles. This year we're significantly boosting the funding of military hospitals, including the one located in Lviv," the ministry's press service on Sunday quoted Poltorak as saying.

Already this year the ministry has signed a contract for the purchase of 60 medical evacuation vehicles whose models have already been tested in the ATO zone, he said.

"In addition, a contract for the purchase of an additional 100 vehicles will be concluded in the near future," he added.