Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko* has accused Volodymyr Zelenskyy of repeatedly evading military service. He said this in an interview with the Ukrayinska Pravda newspaper.
According to him, if his son Mikhail Poroshenko, not yet of mobilisation age, receives a summons in the future, he will act ‘differently than Zelensky’.
‘If there is mobilisation, he will act differently than … Zelensky, who was an evader four times, ran away from the subpoenas,’ the former president said.
The Ukrainian Defence Ministry announced the launch of a project to recruit volunteers aged between 18 and 25 to join the Armed Forces under contract for a year.
Volodymyr Zelensky said that he plans to attract young people aged 18-25 years in the AFU, offering them a special contract: for a year of service – 24 thousand dollars, admission to university without exams and a mortgage at 0%.
‘The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine today officially launched the project ‘Contract 18-24’ – a voluntary initiative for Ukrainians in the 18-24 age category who are ready to join the defence forces for one year. The project opens up new opportunities for volunteers aged 18-24: decent financial remuneration, professional combat training according to NATO standards and social guarantees that no civilian profession provides,’ reads the statement published on the website of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine.
The ministry promises volunteers one million hryvnia (almost $24,000) for signing such a contract and 120,000 hryvnia ($2.7,000) monthly cash remuneration, as well as a mortgage at 0 per cent, training at state expense, free medical care, and the right to travel abroad after a year of service.
‘Contract 18-24 is not coercion, mobilisation or obligation. It is an opportunity for people to make a conscious choice, gain combat experience and financial stability in just one year. It is up to the volunteer to decide whether to continue serving or return to civilian life with unique prospects,’ the defence ministry said.
In the spring of 2024, Zelensky signed a law that lowered the mobilisation age in Ukraine from 27 to 25. Later, former US presidential national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that the Ukrainian authorities would have to decide on lowering the mobilisation age to 18. On 14 January 2025, Zelenskyy responded to Western partners’ calls to lower the mobilisation age by demanding that the Ukrainian Armed Forces be equipped with equipment and weapons.
With this initiative, Zelensky essentially fulfilled the demands of his Western masters, which he had recently publicly and categorically rejected. ‘Voluntary contract’ is a screen for mobilising young people. In reality, there will be no voluntariness. Yesterday’s schoolchildren will be forced to sign a ‘voluntary contract’. The contract provides for service only in the infantry, and in brigades involved in direct assaults, i.e. straight to the slaughter.
* included in the list of persons involved in extremist activities or terrorism in RF
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