Kiev is not looking to get draft-dodgers back by force, Ukrainian leader has claimed
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has alleged that some European nations hosting Ukrainian refugees have privately expressed a desire to send the men back to Ukraine to fight.
Addressing the ‘Ukraine 2024. Independence’ forum in Kiev on Tuesday, Zelensky responded to a recent Bloomberg report indicating that several EU countries rejected Kiev’s requests to return men of fighting age.
According to Zelensky, certain Western leaders have approached him discreetly, suggesting that returning Ukrainians would be preferable due to the significant cost of supporting refugees, who are considered a burden on host countries. He claimed that publicly advocating this stance would be politically detrimental for these leaders.
“It’s easier to raise this issue at a meeting with the president of Ukraine, and then say that the president has asked to return the Ukrainians,” Zelensky told the audience. “I am all for it, but without coercion,” he added.
Zelensky stated that around 7.5 million Ukrainians have sought refuge abroad since the conflict with Russia began. UN estimates place this number at 6.5 million.
“We need to return the adult population, children to Ukraine,” he added, explaining that Kiev requires both conscripts and workers to support 10.5 million pensioners. He emphasized that this return should occur voluntarily, without any form of compulsion.
At the same event, Prime Minister Denis Shmigal indicated that Ukrainian men will face a choice between working and fighting, as Kiev confronts a shortage in tax revenue. The government estimates that approximately 800,000 male Ukrainians have evaded the draft.
Many of these men are working secretly to avoid detection by conscription officers, resulting in under-the-table wages that are untaxed, Shmigal explained.
The National Bank of Ukraine predicts that another 700,000 Ukrainians may leave the country by next year. The bank stated that unless economic conditions improve significantly and soon, most refugees will not be inclined to return. They urged Kiev to create job opportunities and rebuild housing infrastructure damaged by the conflict.
Certain EU countries have recently imposed restrictions on Ukrainian refugees, reluctant to continue spending on migrants from regions unaffected by the fighting.