Editor’s note: This is issue 55 of Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak’s weekly “Ukrainian Economy in Brief” newsletter, covering events from May 6–12, 2024. The digest highlights steps taken in the Ukrainian parliament related to business, economics, and international financial programs. The Kyiv Independent is republishing with permission.
Ukraine could fill its ranks with as many as 20,000 convicts in a move that would also help ease overcrowding in Ukrainian prisons, Justice Minister Denys Maliuska told BBC Ukraine in an interview published on May 10.
Under martial law, Ukrainian men aged between 18 and 60, with some exceptions, are not allowed to leave the country as they may be called up for military service.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed into law the extension of martial law and general mobilization from May 14 to August 11.
Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, voted in favor on May 9 of a draft law that increases the fines given to those who evade mobilization.
Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, passed in the second and final reading on May 8 a bill permitting military service of citizens convicted of certain offenses, said lawmaker Oleksii Honcharenko, one of the bill's authors.
Under martial law, Ukrainian men aged between 18 and 60, with some exceptions, are not allowed to leave the country as they may be called up for military service.
According to the investigation, the most common cases halted by courts were theft, car accidents involving criminal misconduct, and drug trafficking.
A man of draft age died on the territory of the Saksahanskyi military enlistment office in the city of Kryvyi Rih on May 5 due to the "rapid deterioration of his health," the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast military recruitment center reported.
Ukraine's parliament previously extended martial law and mobilization from Feb. 14 until May 14.
Members of the Military Medical Examination Commission can no longer use their own discretion when determining a person's eligibility for the military, the Defense Ministry said on May 4.
There are 94,643 men aged 18 to 65 in the Czech Republic who have temporary protection due to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to the Czech Interior Ministry.
The new ban on military-age Ukrainian men applying for consular services abroad is a temporary suspension and will not apply to those who have updated their military records, the Foreign Ministry said on April 30 as part of a clarification on recent changes.
Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration Olha Stefanishyna said that there will be "no restrictions or forced return of Ukrainian citizens of any gender or age" back to Ukraine.
The Estonian Interior Ministry does not plan to conduct forced repatriation of Ukrainian refugees staying in Estonia, Anneli Viks, the ministry's advisor on citizenship and migration policy, said on April 30 in an interview with Estonian media outlet ERR.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte supported the idea that Vilnius should help Ukraine bring back its military-aged men living abroad, but after consultations with the EU and Kyiv, LRT reported on April 29.
More than 30 men have died while attempting to cross Ukraine's mountainous western border to evade mobilization, State Border Guard Service Head Andriy Demchenko said in an interview with Ukrinform published on April 29.
Returning men of draft age to Ukraine is "ethically ambiguous" and Ukraine will thus have to "take the in initiative" in the process, Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said in an interview with Polish channel TVN24 on April 27.
Ukrainian border guards found the bodies of two men in the Tysa River in Zakarpattia Oblast on the evening of April 27, the State Border Guard Service reported.
U.S. State Department spokesperson Dan Cisek said it is a "difficult question" but that the "government of Ukraine has the right to define its policy" on this issue.
Ukrainian refugees can get a temporary residence permit or prolong a valid one in Germany even if their passports are terminated, Deutsche Welle reported on April 25, citing a representative of the Berlin Senate.
Seventy-four percent of surveyed companies in Ukraine are experiencing a personnel shortage, according to a new study published by the European Business Association (EBA) on April 24.
Lithuania's Defense Minister, Laurynas Kasciunas, said he was closely watching his Polish counterparts who announced a similar stance on April 24, though did not specify exactly what measures would be taken.
Poland will help Ukraine bring its military-aged men back following new changes to passport and consular service laws for Ukrainian men living abroad, Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said on April 24.
The Ukrainian government has banned sending identification documents and passports abroad for Ukrainian men aged 18 to 60, according to a decree published on the Cabinet of Ministers' website on April 24.
Ukrainians have the highest readiness to fight for their country among other European countries, at 62% of the population, according to a survey by the Sociological Group Rating conducted in 2023 together with Gallup International and published on April 23.
The move comes a week after Ukraine finally passed a hotly debated bill on mobilization as the country seeks to bolster its armed forces.
Ukraine's military needs younger men not only because they are physically fitter than older men but also because they can master technology used on the battlefield faster, President Volodymyr Zelensky told French YouTuber Hugo Travers in an interview published on April 21.
Ukraine's bill on mobilization has been signed by President Volodymyr Zelensky, according to the online portal of Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, on April 16.
Ukraine's bill on mobilization has been submitted to President Volodymyr Zelensky for signature, according to the online portal of Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, on April 16.
Season 2 Episode 14 is dedicated to Ukraine’s struggles with mobilization. Host Anastasiia Lapatina is joined by Kyiv Independent reporter Francis Farrell.
The planned rotation at the front continues, with "thousands" of Ukrainian soldiers released during the audit sent to combat units, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces reported on April 12.
