Ukraine is reforming its recruitment efforts to attract younger soldiers and boost forces

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine is in the final stages of drafting recruitment reforms to attract 18- to 25-year-olds who are currently exempt from mobilization as it looks for ways to bolster its fighting force, the battlefield commander recently appointed to the President's Office said.

In his first interview with foreign media since taking up his new position last fall, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Colonel Pavlo Palisa said Ukraine is exploring new recruitment options because the current drafting system inherited from Soviet times is hindering progress.

While Ukraine passed a mobilization law last spring and lowered the age of conscription from 27 to 25 years old, the measures have not had the impact needed to replenish its ranks or replace battlefield losses in its war with Russia.

One initiative is what Palisa described as an ''honest contract," a plan that includes financial incentives, clear guarantees for training, and measures to ensure dialogue between soldiers and their commanders. The plan is aimed at attracting mainly 18- to 25-year-olds who are currently exempt from mobilization, and will also target Ukrainians who have the right to deferment or were discharged after the mobilization law was passed.

''To secure the unit commander and the contract soldier, establish open and professional relations between them, and set clear boundaries that are understandable to both,'' he said Wednesday. ''In my opinion, this is essential for effective dialogue.''

The effort, which Palisa said is in its final stages, could help respond to calls aired by both the Biden and Trump administrations that Ukraine could expand its manpower by lowering the conscription age.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been adamantly opposed to implementing obligatory mobilization starting from 18 years old, saying doing so would radically affect the future prospects of the war-weary country.

''As of now, my view is that we need to start an open dialogue with society,'' Palisa said. ''Because the defense of the state is not only the responsibility of the Armed Forces. It is the duty of every Ukrainian citizen, and it is their obligation.''

Palisa said his office, in collaboration with the Cabinet and the Ministry of Defense, is reviewing why mobilization efforts have fallen short.

''We actually have a huge mobilization resource. In my opinion, at the moment, it is greater than what we currently need to address certain tasks on the frontline," he said. ''The mechanism we currently have does not allow us to be as effective as we could be.''

Palisa was taken straight from the battlefield to the president's office, and he sees his appointment as an attempt to tackle systemic issues within the military. Part of a new generation of Ukrainian military leadership, he was studying at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College when Russia launched its full-scale invasion.

He graduated remotely in the summer of 2022 while fighting on the frontline. He then commanded the 93rd Brigade ''Kholodnyi Yar,'' during the grueling nine-month battle for Bakhmut.

''This is a unique opportunity to bring pressing military issues to the attention of the country's top leadership,'' he said, adding that he intends to return to his battlefield role once his mission is complete.

With Russia continuing to make incremental advances in the Donetsk region, some analysts have pointed to structural weaknesses in Ukraine's command system and faltering communication between the units on the frontline as a key factor in its struggle to hold territory along the 1000 km (620 mile) frontline.

Since the beginning of Moscow's full-scale invasion, Ukraine's army has expanded significantly but years of resisting Russian advances has left little time for strategic management — a gap that now threatens to jeopardize Ukraine's chances of success.

Palisa says there's an urgent need for reforms to improve coordination and effectiveness.

''(We need) to adapt the structure to the logic of modern warfare, which will allow us to be more effective and prevent us from making the same mistakes repeatedly,'' he said. ''This is what needs to be done. There is no other way.''