Ukraine’s Army Chief Urges Faster Pace of Drafting New Soldiers to Repel Russia
- Current mobilization pace doesn’t let troops rotate: Zaluzhnyi
- President Zelenskiy dismissed recruitment officers this year
Valeriy Zaluzhnyi
Photographer: Gleb Garanich/AFP/Getty Images
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Ukraine’s commander-in-chief criticized the current pace of drafting new soldiers as too slow in the face of uncertainty about Western aid and Russian moves to boost the size of its own military.
The authorities in Kyiv are struggling to increase troop numbers and attract volunteers to make headways on the battlefield after the failure to deliver a breakthrough during the fall offensive. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has delayed signing a bill that lowers the conscription age since June and asked his top brass to come up with a comprehensive plan to mobilize more soldiers.