Ukraine’s top general orders draft officers to the front if they’ve dodged combat so far
Oleksandr Syrskyi, the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, has ordered military enlistment offices to deploy physically fit personnel without combat experience to the front lines. Under the new system, war veterans previously injured in battle will fill the resulting vacancies.
The policy change appears to be a response to mounting public outrage over increasingly aggressive practices by Ukraine’s Territorial Recruitment Centers (TRCs), as the country continues to grapple with draft evasion. “These measures are aimed at improving the performance of TRCs and ensuring the principles of social justice, which will help strengthen camaraderie, fighting spirit, and mutual respect within military units,” the General Staff’s statement reads.
According to Syrskyi’s office, nearly 70 percent of TRC personnel already have combat experience, and wounded soldiers make up about half of the TRC’s total staff. Roughly 20 percent of TRC personnel are civilian employees of the military.
