Ukraine instates third call of duty, citing continued Russian aggression

Adopted by a simple
majority of 232 lawmakers, the specific draft notice will take place in all 24
regions of Ukraine and the capital city of Kyiv, and last for 45 days once the
law enters into force.

Introducing the bill,
which was submitted to parliament by President Petro Poroshenko on July 21,
National Security and Defense Council Secretary Andriy Parubiy said it would
mobilize an additional 15 combat and 44 combat-support units for the
government’s antiterrorist operation in Ukraine’s east, arguing that continued
Russian aggression necessitates the move.

Their length of service
wasn’t disclosed, but military expert Valentyn Bardrak has told Yurligazakon, a
legal web portal, that they could serve until the conflict ends or indefinitely
if it exacerbates.

“Russia continues
its policy of escalating (the) armed confrontation… It is necessary to push the
Russian occupants out of Ukraine,” Parubiy told parliament. He estimated
that some 41,000 Russian troops, equipped with 150 tanks, 500 artillery systems
and almost 1,400 armored vehicles are currently amassed along Ukraine’s border.

During a
question-and-answer session prior to the vote, Parubiy stated that reserve officers
and those with higher military educations or military service experience would
be called up in areas where they are needed.

This is the third call-up
since the armed conflict in Ukraine’s two easternmost regions began. The first
took place on March 17 and the second on May 6, according to the National
Security and Defense Council.  Combined,
they yielded 53 military combat units and 18 other military formations.

Also, parliament on July
22 increased the military service age for reservists to 60 years. Thus, the age
limit for privates and non-commissioned officers is 60 years, and 65 for senior
officers.

Speaking on July 21
following the bill’s submission to parliament, Presidential Administration
spokesman Hennadiy Zubko said partial mobilization does not stipulate a
rotation of forces engaged in the government’s antiterrorist operation in
eastern Ukraine but a reinforcement of those currently out in the field.

“There will be
additional recruitments. A rotation is not on the current agenda… The situation in the East is such: we are practically mounting an
offensive and it would be a lie to say that we are planning a rotation,”
he told Channel 5 TV, according to Interfax Ukraine.

That same evening, Parubiy
gave a different assessment of the planned bill in an interview on channel
ICTV, suggesting that a rotation of servicemen “who in some cases have already
spent several months on the frontline” will be carried out if necessary.

“We are carrying out
partial mobilization in order to gather the maximum amount of people that the
Ukrainian government is currently able to equip and provide with necessary
protection before dispatching them to the frontline,” he added, according to
Ukrainska Pravda.

Previous waves of
mobilization have provoked mixed feelings from the population, with many
expecting those dispatched to the conflict zone to return after the mandated
45-day period of service was through. A large proportion of the army contingent
fighting in Ukraine’s east has not been rotated since the armed conflict began
some three months ago.

Hundreds of Ukrainian
soldiers and civilians have been killed since the armed conflict in Donetsk and
Luhansk oblasts began in mid-April, and Russia has been accused by Kyiv of
supplying the pro-Russian insurgents fighting government forces there with
weapons and personnel.

On July 21, spokesman for Ukraine’s Security Council Andriy
Lysenko said that an extra 100 Russian military units had been added to the
contingent massed at the border with Ukraine. The Defense Ministry, meanwhile,
reported that Russia was continuing to fire at Ukrainian positions from its
side of the border.

Kyiv Post staff writer Matthew
Luxmoore can be reached at mjluxmoore@gmail.com.
Kyiv Post editor Mark Rachkevych contributed reporting and can be reached at rachkevych@kyivpost.com.