After much hesitation, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has agreed that reservists can be called up from the age of 25. So far it’s been 27 years. Zelenskyj thought about it for nine months before making the decision.
This allows two more cohorts to be drafted into the ongoing war with Russia. The contribution in question was published on the parliamentary website on Tuesday.
After the change has yet to be published in the government gazette, the government has six months to implement it. Based on birth rates in the late 1990s, theoretically more than 400,000 additional men could be drafted for military service. At the same time, the decision on stricter mobilization rules is still expected next week.
Zelensky hesitated for a long time
Parliament had already passed the law on the reservist age in May last year. After being signed by Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk, it was presented to Zelenskyy for signature in June. However, Zelenskyj claimed in December that he still needed strong arguments to sign. These concerns now appear to have been allayed.
Ukraine has been fending off a large-scale Russian invasion for more than two years. With the declaration of martial law, men of military age between 18 and 60 are banned from leaving the country, with some exceptions. However, so far only men of reservist age 27 or older have been called up.
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers are needed
In view of the difficult situation at the front, Zelensky had declared that up to 500,000 additional soldiers would be needed before the New Year. Army chief Olexander Syrskyj recently stated that the number was lower.
Source: Krone
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