Ukrainian President Zelensky says 'no' to lowering military age
The Ukrainian leader said the West should provide more missiles instead of asking Kiev to mobilize more troops.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has rejected the idea of lowering the military age in the country, rejecting calls from the West on the issue.
Previously, in 2024, Ukraine reduced the age of compulsory military service from 27 to 25 years old.
Some former Western officials have called on Kiev to further lower the age to 18, and the administration of outgoing US President Joe Biden is said to have pressed for this in closed-door discussions.
“The priority should be providing missiles and reducing Russia’s military potential, not lowering Ukraine’s military age,” Zelensky said in a post on social network X on December 10.
“We need to focus on equipping existing brigades and training personnel to use this equipment. We should not compensate for equipment and training shortages with the youth of our soldiers,” he wrote.
The issue was raised on December 9 at a regular press briefing at the US State Department, when spokesman Matthew Miller said the decision was Kiev's.
“What we have made clear is that if they add forces to engage in combat, we and our allies will be ready to equip and train those forces to engage in combat,” he added.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also said earlier that Kiev had to make some “difficult decisions” about mobilizing troops.
“Many of us think it is necessary to put younger people into the fight,” America's top diplomat said in an interview last week.
The lowering of the conscription age is part of a major reform of Ukraine’s military service system, in the hope of boosting recruitment to replace battlefield losses in the war with Russia. However, many Ukrainian men evade recruiting officers or even leave the country illegally, even though the journey across the border can be dangerous and sometimes deadly.
Over the weekend, Mr. Zelensky met with US President-elect Donald Trump, who has pledged to end the conflict after taking office in January 2025. After the meeting in Paris, the Ukrainian leader said he would talk to Mr. Biden about his request to invite Ukraine to NATO, because “there is no point in discussing with Mr. Trump” something over which he has no influence.
According to Moscow, Ukraine’s efforts to join the US-led military bloc and the West’s promise to eventually accept it are among the main causes of the conflict. Russian officials say the West wants to fight Russia “to the last Ukrainian.”
