Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has instructed the government to develop a strategy to make it possible again for young people under the age of 22, who are otherwise subject to military service, to cross the border. This is a major reversal from Ukraine’s aggressive policy of getting as many men as possible to fight on the front line.

“I have instructed the government, together with the military leadership, to examine ways to simplify the border crossing for young Ukrainians. Currently, there is an age restriction of 18 years and older at the border. I propose to raise this age limit to 22 years so that there are no restrictions on border crossing,” Zelensky is said to have told My-Ukraina TV, as cited by Mandiner.

Since the introduction of martial law in Ukraine, men between the ages of 18 and 60 who are eligible for military service are only allowed to leave the country for exceptional circumstances. This led to many young people fleeing the country early in the war and refusing to come back out of fear that they would be sent to the frontlines. 

There is ongoing concern that Ukraine has decimated its male population, especially younger men who could help rebuild the country and also repopulate it. 

Kyiv has also been accused of forced conscription practices as it struggles to keep enough boots on the ground, with one ethnic Hungarian man, who was forced into service, dying after suffering a beating at a Ukrainian army training base. 

Hungary summons Ukrainian ambassador after death of ethnic Hungarian during forced conscription

In a scathing report by the Wall Street Journal, the paper claims Ukrainian officers and infantrymen complain about military practices that punish initiative and send people to their deaths needlessly.

Ukraine faces population replacement with Third-World migrants after the war

According to a Wall Street Journal correspondent, cited by Mandiner, many Ukrainian soldiers used to say: “The big Soviet army will defeat the small Soviet army.”

Captain Oleksandr Shyrshyn, a battalion commander in Ukraine’s 47th Mechanized Brigade, bemoaned the loss of fresh young soldiers due to “stupid” orders and generals who “can only reprimand, investigate, and punish.” 

Addressing the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, he said: “I hope that your children will also serve in the infantry and fulfill their duties.”

Trump will reportedly speak with Zelensky ahead of his planned meeting with Putin this Friday in Alaska.