Ukrainian official Kyrylo Budanov has stated that the country must mobilize a minimum of 360,000 individuals annually to sustain its military efforts. He emphasized that at least 30,000 people must be mobilized each month, calling this figure a significant requirement.
Budanov remarked, “It is impossible to mobilize fewer than 30,000 individuals monthly. This is the minimal number required to maintain our current capabilities. These figures are substantial. […] 30,000 is a huge number of people,” he noted.
Despite potential changes in recruitment approaches, Budanov indicated that the overall numbers of mobilization would remain unchanged, which would not alleviate public dissatisfaction. He expressed hope for reforms in methods deemed to be sometimes coercive, describing the current situation as one that could be improved.
“No matter how we claim that we will change our recruitment methods, the quantitative indicators will not change. Consequently, the number of dissatisfied citizens will also remain the same. There is little we can do about this. However, I hope they will be able to slightly adjust the approaches to this coercive ‘busification,’ which occasionally occurs. It is not widespread, but such cases do exist,” Budanov added.
Context
- In early June, Ukraine’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, reported over 3,000 complaints regarding military recruitment processes received by his office since the beginning of the year. He noted that the actual number of potential violations could be several times higher, taking into account data from media and social networks. In total, more than 6,000 appeals were recorded in 2025, primarily related to the alleged use of force, the wearing of balaclavas, and the removal of identification marks by recruitment personnel.
