Ukraine urged to lower conscription age to 18; US to send Kyiv more weapons
Al Jazeera
Kyiv is not mobilising or training enough new soldiers, a senior US official says, as Russia makes major advances in Ukraine.
Ukraine should consider lowering the age of military service to 18, a US official has said, as the outgoing White House administration is reported to be preparing a new weapons package to bolster Kyiv before President Joe Biden leaves office in January.
Speaking to reporters, an unnamed senior US official said on Wednesday that Ukraine should consider lowering the age of military service from 25 to 18 years, as the country was not mobilising or training enough new soldiers to replace those killed in action.
“The need right now is manpower,” the senior Biden administration official said.
“The Russians are in fact making progress, steady progress, in the east, and they are beginning to push back Ukrainian lines in Kursk … Mobilisation and more manpower could make a significant difference at this time, as we look at the battlefield today.”
The official also said Ukrainian forces now have “healthy stockpiles of the vital tools, munitions and weapons that they need to succeed on the battlefield”.
