Ukrainian lawmakers have sparked anger by scrapping a clause in a draft law that would have given soldiers who have spent long periods fighting on the frontlines a chance to return home.
With Ukraine’s army outnumbered by Russia on the battlefield, “the offensive continues along the entire frontline. And currently it is impossible to weaken the defence forces”, Dmytro Lazutkin, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s defence ministry, said Wednesday on state TV.
“We cannot make hasty decisions now,” he added, explaining the military’s opposition to the provision.
Military leaders have put pressure on politicians to ditch a draft amendment that would have given soldiers serving for more than 36 months the possibility to be discharged.
The draft law passed its first reading in parliament in February. That draft included the demobilisation plans, after debating its recruitment policy for more than a year.