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Blinken says younger Ukrainians should be called up for military service

On November 27, Reuters reported that Washington was putting pressure on Kiev to lower the draft age to 18

BRUSSELS, December 4. /TASS/. The US and its allies insist that Ukraine lower the minimum age of military conscription to 18 years, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.

"Getting younger people into the fight, we think, many of us think, is necessary. Right now, 18-to 25-year-olds are not in the fight," he told Reuters.

In October, Ukrainian lawmaker Maria Ionova said the country’s Western partners insisted on lowering the minimum age for military mobilization. Ukrainian news media have reported that as the authorities are struggling to replenish the losses of the Ukrainian armed forces, they will have to begin making more effort in conscripting younger people, including students starting from the age of 18. But on October 9, the Ukrainian parliament passed a bill that sought to ban the mobilization of people under the age of 25.

On November 27, Reuters reported that Washington was putting pressure on Kiev to lower the draft age to 18.

Currently, men from 25 to 60 years of age are subject to mobilization in Ukraine. That is after the minimum age for mobilization was lowered from 27 years starting from April 2024. Despite move, Ukrainian forces continue to face a serious shortage of personnel.

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