Ukraine takes steps to simplify recruitment of mercenaries

(MENAFN) The Ukrainian government has taken steps to simplify the recruitment of foreign mercenaries for its military, allowing officials to organize and finance transportation, accommodation, and meals for recruits, according to Ukrainian lawmakers. This move comes as Ukraine faces difficulties with mandatory conscription and a rise in draft evasion. Foreign “volunteers,” whom Moscow views as mercenaries, have been filling in for manpower shortages within Ukraine’s armed forces.

On Tuesday, MPs Aleksey Goncharenko and Taras Meinichuk announced new policy changes that enable Ukrainian recruitment centers to facilitate the movement of foreign nationals and stateless individuals across the border. These trips can now be funded by the Defense Ministry and National Guard, according to the officials.

Russia considers non-Ukrainian fighters in Ukraine’s military as criminals, claiming they are not entitled to the protections typically granted to combatants under international law. After reports of foreign fighters being involved in an incursion into Russia’s Kursk Region, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that such mercenaries are not protected by the 1949 Geneva Convention on Prisoners of War (POWs).

Russian officials have suggested that some of these mercenaries are unofficially deployed by their governments to operate advanced Western weapons systems or to provide military advice to Ukrainian officers. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov recently stated that a missile strike in Sumy targeted Ukrainian military leaders meeting with "Western colleagues," implying that NATO personnel are actively involved in directing Ukrainian operations. Recent US and UK media reports have indicated substantial involvement of both countries' militaries in the Ukraine conflict, supporting Moscow’s claims of NATO's deep involvement in the war.

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