Ukraine’s justice minister reacts to claims country must conscript 18-year-olds
Source: Radio Svoboda
Ukraine’s justice minister Olha Stefanyshyna revealed that EU officials tried to feel out if Ukraine is ready to lower the conscription age to 18 during their recent meetings as Brussels wants more clarity on the controversial issue.
Stefanishyna said, “We can’t accept this criticism because it ignores the fact that there is no system in place for planning, training, and equipping our brigades.’
Stefanishyna strongly rejected calls to lower the mobilization age, calling such demands an “unacceptable stance.”
The minister stressed that Kyiv that having troops equipped is far more pressing issue.
“The EU has a major role to play in the training of Ukrainian forces… The potential here is significant; the real issue is planning. With proper planning and equipping, there will be no reason for such discussions about mobilization,” she explained.
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Petro Poroshenko’s lawyers have appealed to the High Anti-Corruption Court demanding that NABU be obligated to register proceedings regarding the fact of exerting influence on the court and to recognize Petro Poroshenko as a victim in the case of the Deputy Head of the Office of the President, Iryna Mudra, due to her pressure on Supreme Court judges who were considering a lawsuit to overturn sanctions.
Internationally recognized brands and financial institutions should direct capital to Ukraine now, not waiting for the hostilities to end. This was emphasized by Rinat Akhmetov, president of FC Shakhtar, during a working visit to UEFA headquarters in Nyon, Switzerland, where he met with UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin.
In recent days, Moscow’s official rhetoric has been dominated by hysteria over the decision of…
In 2025, the deadliest year yet for civilians, Ukraine’s three largest charitable foundations raised a record 105.9 billion hryvnias. It is more than the years 2022–2024 combined. According to the UN, humanitarian aid in Ukraine was delivered by more than 450 organisations, reaching five million people over the course of the year. Civic foundations hold licences to purchase lethal weapons, which is a function states have monopolised for centuries. These record sums were underwritten by international government grants, which means foreign states now channel billions directly through Ukrainian civic funds, bypassing inter-state channels. It is hard to imagine a stronger institutional trust in civil society.