Ukraine tightens conscription laws to curb draft evasion

The war in Ukraine has been ongoing for over two and a half years. During this time, both sides have conducted at least several conscriptions, which, in the case of Ukrainians, have become increasingly problematic. As early as February 24, 2022, a significant part of society was mobilized, while in Russia it was a small percentage of full capacity.

The results did not take long to show. After just a few months, the Ukrainian government complained about declining combat capabilities due to the decreasing number of soldiers ready to fight. As a result, efforts began in 2022 to seal conscription laws for those who avoided it the first time.

As it turned out, there were quite a few of them, so one of the first loopholes was quickly patched. Despite this, many of those subject to conscription remained, among other places, outside the borders of Ukraine or at an address other than the one indicated in the documentation. Consequently, the government in Kyiv quickly undertook work in this area as well.

Even after two and a half years of war, Ukraine is still facing the problem of people avoiding mobilization. As a result, a law has now been announced that will almost eliminate this possibility. The police will pursue those who fail to comply with this obligation.

Many people were registered at one address but lived at another. Thus, we could not deliver summonses to such conscripts because we did not know their locations. The changes have given us the ability to legally gather relevant data about the conscripts. Now we know where a person lives, how to contact them, and where they work – noted Lt. Col. Andrii Moroz, head of the mobilization and defence sector, as quoted by Censor.NET.

This means that services will obtain information about their current whereabouts regardless of the individuals themselves.