“The adviser of the Council committee announced the “reduction” of the mobilization age in 2025. Denied in the parliament December 20, 22:59 Share: Ukrainian serviceman (Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine / Facebook) Advisor to the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Economic Development, Nazariy Volyanskyi, said that in 2025 it is possible to lower the mobilization age to 18-20 years. It was denied in the parliament. On the broadcast of Novosti.Live, the adviser said that European and American partners are allegedly calling on Kyiv from 2022”, — write on: ua.news
Ukrainian serviceman (Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine / Facebook)
Adviser to the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Economic Development, Nazariy Volyanskyi, said that in 2025, it is possible to lower the mobilization age to 18-20 years. It was denied in the parliament.
On the broadcast of Novosti.Live, the adviser said that European and American partners are allegedly calling on Kyiv to lower the mobilization age to 18 from 2022.
“When they ask me if it will decrease, of course it will decrease. For example, next year, I think, in the first months — January-February-March — such a decision will be made to lower the mobilization age, because it is the American administration that is putting pressure on it,” he said.
Volyansky believes that Ukraine will take such a step, because otherwise the US will stop military support.
The chairman of the Committee on Economic Development and People’s Deputy Dmytro Natalukha drew attention to this statement of Volyanskyi. He emphasized that the Verkhovna Rada did not approve and does not plan to approve “no decision,” as Volyanskyi said.
“He is indeed an adviser to the Committee on Economic Development on a public basis, but, like a dozen other advisers, he was given this status in order to advise, not to harm with unclear and speculative statements,” Natalukha said.
According to him, at the next committee, the question of depriving Volyansky of the status of councilor will be brought up and conducted “additional explanatory work with other advisors regarding their functionality and public status.”
On December 18, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky rejected the possibility of lowering the mobilization age in Ukraine to 18 years.
Earlier, The Washington Post wrote that there is increasing pressure on Zelensky to send more young people to the front by introducing mobilization from the age of 18.
Discussions about lowering the mobilization age to 18 — what is known
As of December 2024, citizens of Ukraine aged 18 to 25 can enter into a contract for military service for a period of one year.
The Associated Press agency, citing sources, reported that the administration of US President Joe Biden is calling on Ukraine to lower the mobilization age from 25 to 18 in order to quickly increase the size of the army.
On November 19, President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that there are no plans to lower the mobilization age in Ukraine. The head of state also said that the partners would like to lower the mobilization age in Ukraine, but he considers it dangerous.
On November 22, a high-ranking NV source in the Armed Forces reported that Ukraine is working on a new contract format with the Armed Forces of Ukraine for youth aged 18-24.
On November 29, Ivan Tymochko, the head of the Reservist Council of the Ground Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, said that next year all men aged 18 to 25 must undergo mandatory basic military training.
On December 2, The Washington Post reported that the Biden administration was disappointed with Zelenskyi’s decision not to lower the draft age.
On December 5, adviser to the President of Ukraine Dmytro Lytvyn stated that the country is not preparing to lower the mobilization age from the current 25 years to 18 years.
On December 11, the British edition of The Telegraph, citing its own sources, said that the refusal of the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi to the calls of the White House to lower the mobilization age to 18 created tension in his relations with the President of the United States Joe Biden.