About 1 mln people defending Ukraine: defense minister

KIEV, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Ukraine's Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Friday that about 1 million people are participating in defending Ukraine, the government-run Ukrinform news agency reported.

Some 700,000 soldiers of Ukraine's Armed Forces, 100,000 officers of the National Police, 90,000 members of the National Guard and 60,000 border guards are involved in the activities of the security and defense sector in Ukraine, Reznikov said.

Ukraine is interested in attracting more investment in its military-industrial complex and creating joint ventures with partners to meet the needs of the defense forces, the minister said.

Due to the conflict with Russia, Ukraine has become a kind of "huge training facility" where new types of weapons and innovative solutions are used, Reznikov noted.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict started on Feb. 24.