According to the Associated Press, the Biden administration is urging Ukraine to lower its conscription age from 25 to 18 to increase the size of its military to bolster its efforts against Russia.
A senior Biden administration official told the outlet that the outgoing Democratic administration wants Ukraine to expand the pool of fighting-age men due to being badly outnumbered by Russia.
White House pressing Ukraine to draft 18-year-old men to help fill manpower needs to battle Russiahttps://t.co/2hX1va9zvs
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) November 27, 2024
From the Associated Press:
The official said “the pure math” of Ukraine’s situation now is that it needs more troops in the fight.
The White House has pushed more than $56 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since the start of Russia’s February 2022 invasion and expects to send billions more to Kyiv before Biden leaves office in less than months.
But with time running out, the Biden White House is also sharpening its viewpoint that Ukraine has the weaponry it needs and now must dramatically increase its troop levels if it’s going to stay in the fight with Russia.
The official said the Ukrainians believe they need about 160,000 additional troops, but the U.S. administration believes they probably will need more than that.
ADVERTISEMENTMore than 1 million Ukrainians are now in uniform, including National Guard and other units.
White House pressing Ukraine to draft 18-year-olds so they have enough troops to battle Russia https://t.co/vII9HqRLpz
— CTV News (@CTVNews) November 27, 2024
Per CTV News:
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has also been hearing concerns from allies in other Western capitals that Ukraine has a troop level problem and not an arms problem, according to European officials who requested anonymity to discuss the sensitive diplomatic conversations.
The European allies have also stressed that the lack of depth means that it may soon become untenable for Ukraine to continue to operate in Russia’s Kursk border region that Ukraine seized this year. The situation in Kursk has become further complicated by the arrival of thousands of North Korean troops(opens in a new tab) who have come to help Moscow try to claw back the land.
The stepped-up push on Ukraine to strengthen its fighting ranks also comes as Ukraine braces for President-elect Donald Trump to take office on Jan. 20. The Republican said he would bring about a swift end to the war and has raised uncertainty about whether his administration would continue the vital U.S. military support for Ukraine.
The news follows reports of Joe Biden making a last-ditch effort to send $24 billion to Ukraine before he leaves office in January.
Biden makes last-ditch ask of Congress for $24 billion to help Ukraine: report https://t.co/5QEHY4ZybK pic.twitter.com/ofIM0oODbM
— New York Post (@nypost) November 26, 2024
From the New York Post:
On his way out of the White House, President Biden is reportedly making a last-minute plea to Congress for $24 billion in aid for war-torn Ukraine to bolster its military support and replenish US stocks that had dwindled.
ADVERTISEMENTThe White House Office of Management and Budget suggested that Congress could fold the renewed aid into its solution to avert a government shutdown next month, according to a request obtained by Politico Pro.
Several lawmakers saw the proposal Monday and it features $8 billion for the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative to fund US company contracts to arm Kyiv and $16 billion to refill US weaponry stock, per the report.
Already, some Republicans cried foul over the reported ask.
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