Russia did not abandon plans to seize Ukraine - Poltorak

He said this at a meeting of the reform committee of the Defense Ministry and the Armed Forces of Ukraine, an Ukrinform correspondent said.

"The Russian Federation did not abandon its desire to carry out aggression and seize our territory. The year 2018 was the year when we watched and prepared. Russia created a grouping of troops that could start aggression against Ukraine. Russia has significantly raised the degree of aggressive policies in the Sea of Azov," Poltorak said.

According to him, these factors contributed to the introduction of martial law in Ukraine, which helped significantly increase the level of readiness of the Ukrainian state to protect its territory.

"We have deployed a grouping of troops and increased their number, especially in areas under threat. We have mobilized reserves and increased their number. We have taken certain measures to increase the capabilities of the Armed Forces and other defense forces. In addition, we have considerably increased the readiness of reservists ," Poltorak said.

He noted that all this happened during the reform process in the Armed Forces, which will continue in 2019-2020.