In the two years he’s served on Ukraine’s battlefield, Ilya has had just 25 days of leave.
“Two years without a break, without rotation — of course, morale is low and it’s killing motivation,” said Ilya, who serves in an assault brigade. “We need either rotation or normal vacations to rest properly.”
The soldier said Ukraine’s open-ended service was among the reasons men tried to avoid being drafted to the front. But, he said, “if people don’t come, we can’t rest”, adding that the personnel shortages were so bad in his unit that upcoming leave had been cancelled.
A new mobilisation law — due to be put to a parliamentary vote on March 31 — seeks to update the country’s legal framework ahead of a probable recruitment wave this year in which up to 500,000 people could be drafted. Some 330,000 troops are estimated to be currently deployed on the battlefield.
The draft will be aimed at modernising recruitment and training as well as replacing those troops who have been there from the first month of war, the Ukrainian defence ministry told the Financial Times. “It will strengthen our defence posture,” it added.
But the law is proving controversial, with more than 4,000 amendments submitted by Ukrainian lawmakers on the first draft.
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, many Ukrainians volunteered to defend their country. But that pool has been exhausted and a large proportion of the men of fighting age are unwilling to be deployed to the front.
@WittyBallotBoxTranshumanist3mos3MO
Thought provoking not just for Ukraine but to the west more broadly. If Ukraine who was invaded is struggling, what does that mean for article 5?
@BrainyCrackersRepublican3mos3MO
A conventional war between russia and NATO would look radically different. NATO would achieve air supremacy in days for example.
@MindHouseGreen3mos3MO
Do you think it is still possible to achieve large-scale strategical gains in the mid/long term? Don’t you think attrition is making this scenario increasingly unlikely?
@LeftistBobcatPatriot3mos3MO
Possible, if russia is attrited more than Ukraine. There is no other option, both parties are banking on it.
@GraciousBearDemocrat3mos3MO
Quite interesting.
Not new news, but still a hard problem to solve: "When Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, many Ukrainians volunteered...But that pool has been exhausted and a large proportion of the men of fighting age are unwilling to be deployed to the front."
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