“It’s quite possible Russians will move much closer quite soon if there’s nobody to stop them,” Bezhevets said.
“If, along with the lack of ammunition, weapons, shells and so on, we’ve got a lack of personnel, it’s a tragedy.”
Ukraine’s General Staff could need between 450-500,000 mobilized troops in 2024, the then-Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Dec. 26.
“As for this figure (450-500,000), we formulated it for the next year,” Zaluzhnyi said.
The government registered a new version of the mobilization draft law in the Verkhovna Rada on Jan. 30. Conscription notices were proposed to be issued through conscripts’ electronic portals.
Lowering the conscription age to 25 years, setting the terms for demobilization to 36 months, introducing voluntary mobilization for the convicted, restrictions for those who evade military service, banning obtaining public service positions without military training and others are among innovations introduced.
Verkhovna Rada deputies adopted draft law on mobilization in the first reading on Feb. 7. It will be amended before the second reading.
It will be necessary to carry out additional mobilization of Ukrainians the head of the Servant of the People faction in case of US aid decrease or its lack, the head of the ruling Servant of the People party, David Arakhamia said on Feb. 22.