The AFU Ground Forces Commander urged conscripts to find the courage to join the ranks of the Armed Forces. After all, no matter how many weapons the allies give us, the army lacks people.
Ground Forces Commander Pavlyuk called on Ukrainians to join the Armed Forces
Today, the same people say that our army is the strongest and most professional in Europe and the world. We have Western weapons at our disposal, we know and understand the enemy's plans, and we have talented and experienced commanders. Two years ago, we defended Kyiv, and now we are using our military technologies to strike military targets a thousand kilometres from the contact line. But no matter how much help we get or how many weapons we have, we lack people!
Oleksandr Pavlyuk
AFU Ground Forces Commander
The general noted that "the equipment does not drive by itself, the weapon does not shoot by itself, the drone does not fly by itself," so the units must be updated.
He emphasised that the occupiers must be forced to leave our land, and if we do not do this, "there will be no peaceful life, no rights and freedoms at all." This is evidenced by Russia itself and what it is doing in the temporarily occupied territories.
The more Ukrainians find the courage to join the ranks of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the fewer chances Russia will have to implement its bloodthirsty plans . And the sooner Ukrainian cities will return to a normal, safe life. Therefore, I call on Ukrainians to leave their emotions behind, not to succumb to provocations. We have to realise that no one will be able to sit down. After all, the fate of the country, the fate of our nation is at stake. Russia will not leave anyone alone: neither those who hid, nor those who betrayed Ukraine, Pavliuk added.
The general reminded that the soldiers enter the military units after passing the basic combined military training. And not necessarily for combat positions.
The Armed Forces need various specialists: drivers, clerks, cooks, construction workers, IT specialists, accountants, doctors, engineers. You can verify my words by opening job search sites — there are all these vacancies, Pavliuk concluded.
What is known about mobilisation in Ukraine
In December 2023, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the need to mobilise an additional 450-500 thousand people. Later, the General Staff, when Valerii Zaluzhnyi was the AFU Commander-in-Chief, said that the military did not make such a separate request for numbers.
Later, the newly appointed AFU Commander-in-Chief, Oleksandr Syrskyi, said that thanks to the redistribution of the load between individual units and units of the Defence Forces and conducting a review of the capabilities of the Ukrainian army, it was possible to "significantly reduce" the need to mobilize reservists.
Moreover, Ukrainian PM Denys Shmyhal also confirmed that Ukraine does not need to mobilize 500,000 people. According to him, the volume of newly mobilised recruits may be smaller.
At the same time, Ukraine is working on a new bill on mobilization, which will significantly change the rules of military registration and service in the ranks of the Defense Forces during martial law. Verkhovna Rada is expected to start considering the document's final draft in the coming days.
