Ukraine considers army proposal to mobilise another 500,000 for war with Russia
- Mobilising hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians is ‘highly sensitive’, Zelensky says
- Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his satisfaction with the course of the war
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said the military had proposed mobilising 450,000-500,000 more Ukrainians into the armed forces in what would mark a dramatic step up of Kyiv’s war with Russia.
The Ukrainian leader told his end-of-year news conference on Tuesday it was a “highly sensitive” issue that the military and government would discuss before deciding whether to send the proposal to parliament.
Zelensky said he wanted to hear more arguments in favour of mobilising the additional people before backing such a move.
“This is a very serious number,” he said.
Ukraine’s troop numbers are not known, but it has said in the past it has around 1 million people under arms. Russia has been expanding its army during the war and said on Tuesday it planned to boost its ranks to 1.5 million service members.
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“I said I would need more arguments to support this move. Because first of all, it’s a question of people, secondly, it’s a question of fairness, it’s a question of defence capability, and it’s a question of finances,” Zelensky said.
Such a major mobilisation would cost Ukraine the equivalent of US$13.4 billion. Zelensky said that Ukraine may not be able to afford mobilising huge numbers, explaining that roughly six taxpayers were needed to finance one soldier.
“How do we find three million more taxpayers from January on?” Zelensky asked.
Ukraine, which initially saw tens of thousands of volunteer fighters queuing up to defend their country from Russia’s invasion, is now trying to conscript more men to replace those currently at the front.
There have been discussions behind closed doors for weeks on how to improve the draft process. Some Ukrainians have reacted angrily to social media videos showing draft officers handing out call-up papers at gyms and resorts.
The Ukrainian leader ruled out mobilising women, but said he could agree to lowering men’s conscription age from 27 to 25.
There has been tension between Zelensky and the head of the army.
This week, army chief Valery Zaluzhny criticised a decision, made by Zelensky, to fire the heads of the regional military draft offices amid a crackdown on corruption this summer.
The front line has barely budged this year as a Ukrainian counteroffensive ran up against sturdy Russian defences. Now, with winter setting in, troop movements are being slowed by bad weather, placing greater emphasis on artillery, missiles and drones.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said earlier Tuesday that the Kremlin’s forces have taken the initiative in Ukraine and were well positioned for the coming year.
“We are effectively doing what we think is needed, doing what we want,” Putin told Russian military brass. “Where our commanders consider it necessary to stick to active defences they are doing so, and we are improving our positions where it’s needed.”
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The question of how long Western countries will provide essential support for Kyiv has also grown increasingly urgent.
Zelensky last week embarked on a tour of Western countries to make the case for more military and political support as Russia’s invasion grinds closer to its two-year-anniversary in February.
But he failed to convince the US Congress to immediately approve US$60 billion in support, while in Brussels, Hungarian leader Viktor Orban blocked and aid package of around €50 billion (US$55 billion).
Zelensky said that he wanted to organise talks with Orban to “find solutions” to their differences, and voiced confidence that Washington would follow through on aid.
“I am confident that the United States will not betray us,” he said.
Additional reporting by Associated Press and Agence France-Presse
