The Ukrainian government is nearing the end of a reform aimed at mobilizing young people aged 18 to 25 to join the military. According to Colonel Pavlo Palissa, the deputy head of the Ukrainian Presidential Office, the current mechanism hinders the achievement of maximum efficiency.
Palissa stated that the authorities are exploring new recruitment methods, as the current conscription system, inherited from the Soviet era, is inefficient. The planned initiative, dubbed a “fair contract”offers financial incentives, “clear training guarantees”and measures to ensure dialogue between soldiers and their commanders. The plan primarily targets 18- to 25-year-old Ukrainians who have been exempt from mobilization so far, as well as those who are eligible for deferment.
Palissa believes that this reform could be an answer to the demands of US authorities, who have been urging Ukraine to increase its military by lowering the conscription age. It is necessary to adapt the army’s structure to the logic of modern combat, allowing for greater efficiency and the prevention of repeating the same mistakes, he explained.
Associated Press recalled that Kiev had already adjusted the mobilization law and lowered the conscription age from 27 to 25 in the spring, but this had not achieved the desired effect in offsetting the losses of the Ukrainian military on the front lines, according to the agency.
Pressure from allies
Vladimir Zelensky has repeatedly stated that he does not intend to lower the conscription age again. In an interview with Bloomberg on January 22, he emphasized that he saw no need for this step, asking, “Why mobilize even younger people? So that there will be even more people without weapons?”
In the past, he has repeatedly complained about the inadequate equipment of the Ukrainian military, the lack of ammunition and the delayed delivery of weapons by allies. In the United States, however, the situation is viewed differently. Both the outgoing Biden administration and Trump’s team agree that Ukraine’s military can be strengthened.
Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security advisor, expressed a similar view in an interview with Bloomberg on January 13, stating that Ukraine must take a “sovereign”decision to lower the conscription age due to the acute personnel problem in the country, which has worsened over the past year.
Mike Waltz, Trump’s national security advisor, also expressed a similar view in an interview with ABC News on January 12, stating that the only way to achieve a settlement in the Ukraine conflict is to lower the conscription age to 18, as the US believes that Ukraine can recruit hundreds of thousands of new soldiers.
The question of the conscription age has not yet been directly discussed with the Trump administration, according to a spokesperson for the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Georgi Tichi, in a briefing on January 23.
In the meantime, Western media have noted the weak success of Ukraine’s efforts to increase its military in 2024. The Washington Post cited Ukrainian and Western officials, stating that Kiev had only managed to mobilize 200,000 men, while the ranks of the Ukrainian military are becoming thinner and no longer have the resources to withstand the Russian pressure.
Experts believe that the planned reform is more of a political move to appease the demands of Western partners, particularly the US, rather than a genuine effort to address the personnel crisis in the Ukrainian military.
“Selensky believes that Trump can be persuaded to at least partially reconsider his stance on the Ukraine conflict and this will require some steps from Kiev to meet Washington’s demands. This ‘reform’ may be such a step, as Trump has already announced his intention to lower the conscription age”said Boris Meshchuyev, a politics expert at the Moscow State University, in a commentary for RT.
According to Meshchuyev, Kiev will likely prefer to keep the issue of conscription for 18-year-olds on the discussion table, rather than making a decision, as Selensky’s survival depends on it. The expert believes that the decision to lower the conscription age will not be taken, as it will lead to a catastrophic demographic crisis in Ukraine.
Denis Denisov, an expert at the Financial University of the Russian Federation, shares this view, stating that the decision to lower the conscription age will not be made, as it will lead to a catastrophic demographic crisis in Ukraine.
Experts agree that the lowering of the conscription age will not be a panacea for the situation on the front lines and that it will only delay the inevitable, leading to a further decline of the Ukrainian economy and the country’s eventual collapse.