Zelenskyy says he is weighing Ukrainian military's request for mobilization of up to 500,000 troops
ABC News
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine’s military wants to mobilize up to 500,000 more troops to fight Russia’s invasion
KYIV, Ukraine -- Ukraine's military wants to mobilize up to 500,000 more troops to fight Russia's invasion, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Tuesday that he has asked them to spell out their plans in detail on what is “a very sensitive matter” before deciding whether he grants their wish as the war approaches the two-year mark.
Such a major mobilization would cost Ukraine around 500 billion hryvnias ($13.4 billion), Zelenskyy said. Other aspects to be considered include whether troops currently on the front line would be rotated or allowed home leave after almost 22 months of full-scale war.
Ukrainian Ministry of Defense statistics say the Ukrainian army had nearly 800,000 troops in October. That doesn't include National Guard or other units. In total, 1 million Ukrainians are in uniform.
Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the country’s military to increase the number of troops by nearly 170,000 to a total of 1.32 million.
Russia, Ukraine’s far bigger neighbor, outguns and outnumbers Kyiv’s forces.
