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Men under 22 can leave Ukraine – Zelensky | Men under 22 can leave Ukraine – Zelensky |
(about 8 hours later) | |
Kiev had barred all men aged between 18 and 60 from traveling abroad as part of martial law and its mobilization campaign | |
Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky has ordered the authorities to allow men aged under 22 to leave the country. The move marks a stark change to Kiev’s martial law policies, which had barred all male Ukrainians aged between 18 and 60 from traveling abroad. | |
The Ukrainian leader announced the change in a Telegram post on Tuesday, saying it would be a “positive” development that would allow “many young Ukrainians to maintain ties” with their homeland and potentially return to Ukraine for study. | |
“I instructed the government as well as the military to work on simplifying the border crossing [procedures] for young Ukrainians,” Zelensky added, stating that those aged under 22 should not face any restrictions. | |
Kiev introduced the travel ban soon after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022. At the time, it imposed martial law and launched a massive mobilization campaign. The Ukrainian authorities have nonetheless struggled with widespread draft evasion throughout the conflict with Russia. | |
Last year, Kiev lowered the draft age from 27 to 25 while tightening mobilization rules. The forced conscription campaign has triggered violent clashes between reluctant recruits and draft officers, many of which were caught on camera and published online. | |
Potential recruits have resorted to hiding from military officers or using various tactics, including bribery and forged documents, to escape mobilization. Many men have also tried to cross the border and flee abroad illegally, including through traversing rough terrain, often resulting in fatal consequences. | |
In March 2024, the Ukrainian border guard service reported that more than two dozen men had drowned while swimming across the Tisza River on the border with Romania, in an effort to flee the country. | |
Ukrainian border patrols have also stopped thousands of people trying to flee abroad, going as far as to shoot some of them. Last year, border guards published photos of officers beating and humiliating dozens of men after they were caught attempting to cross the border. |
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