U.S. says it will arm new troops if Ukraine lowers draft age; Zelensky calls for equipping existing units
The White House has “made clear” to Kyiv that it would arm and train new recruits if Ukraine lowers its conscription age, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said during a briefing.
“If they produce additional forces to join the fight, we and our allies will be ready to equip those forces and train those forces to enter battle,” Miller said, adding that the ultimate decision rests with Ukrainian authorities.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky responded by emphasizing the importance of missile supplies and efforts to weaken Russia’s military capacity. “Our priority should be providing existing brigades with equipment and training personnel to use it. We should not compensate for a lack of equipment and training with young soldiers,” Zelensky wrote.
He added that the focus of military aid should be “to save as many lives as possible, not to keep weapons in storage.”
The Biden administration has been urging Ukraine to lower its conscription age from 25 to 18 for some time, with calls becoming more urgent since late November. White House officials have expressed concern that Ukraine is “not currently mobilizing or training enough soldiers to replace their battlefield losses while keeping pace with Russia’s growing military.”
Under a law passed in the spring of 2024, Ukraine reduced its conscription age from 27 to 25. Currently, men aged 18 to 25 who are deemed fit for service are called up for mandatory military duty but are not mobilized. Mobilization in this age group is limited to those who have completed mandatory service in peacetime or graduated from a military academy.
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