Coercive mobilization necessary in wartime, Budanov says
Kyrylo Budanov (Photo: Channel 24 / YouTube)
Attempting “cosmetic” reforms of Territorial
Recruitment Centers will not solve Ukraine’s mobilization problems while
the war continues, Presidential Office head Kyrylo Budanov said on April 3.
Speaking at a CEO Club Ukraine event in Kyiv, Budanov described the current mobilization process as chaotic but said there is little that can be done to fundamentally fix it before the war ends, according to Suspilne public broadcaster.
“The army needs human capital; we need people because the war has been going on for 12½ years, including more than four years of full‑scale invasion,” he said.
“People watch television and the internet, Telegram and so on — they don’t really want to go fight. There is a minimum plan: the minimum number of people needed to sustain the front. There is absolutely no way to bridge the gap between these two realities. So if people don’t go voluntarily, they will have to be mobilized.”
Budanov added that a change in the name or operation of territorial recruitment centers “won’t change anything. Or the front will collapse.”
On March 30, Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi rated Ukraine’s mobilization effort six to seven out of 10 and said the current task is to make the process more comfortable for citizens.
In February, The Times reported that Ukraine needs about 250,000 more troops to stabilize the front.
On Feb. 23, Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said
work is under way on a comprehensive mobilization reform.
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