1 million hryvnias and a clear deadline. Will the state be able to 'rejuvenate' the army without coercion?

The army needs hardy people

The average age of Ukrainian soldiers at the front is 43-45 years old, Bloomberg wrote in May 2024, citing a senior military official. There is a shortage of soldiers under 30. This is the age when people tend to be more physically fit, and have better eyesight and hearing.

"At the front, we need people who can put on a bulletproof vest and helmet, take an assault rifle, put several hundred rounds of ammunition in a backpack, run five kilometers with all this, and then perform some kind of combat task: assault, repel, etc.", military expert Pavlo Narozhnyi told hromadske.

The media has repeatedly reported that the White House is pressuring Kyiv to consider lowering the conscription age of its soldiers to 18. However, Ukraine's military and political leadership is not ready to take such a step.

"Those who are talking about simply lowering the mobilization age are populists because the modern army does not fight in numbers," Mykhailo Samus, a military expert and deputy director of the Center for Army, Conversion and Disarmament Studies, told hromadske.

The Ukrainian Defense Forces have already stopped forming new brigades and are focusing on manning the existing ones. The problem is not the number of brigades, he said, but the fact that the management system is not working.

We need to create a corps unit that will take control of at least the over 100 brigades we have. We can lower the conscription age and mobilize everyone, create 300 brigades, but it will just be chaos. It will do more harm than good.Mykhailo Samus, military expert

The "Contract 18-24" program is precisely the alternative that will help to "rejuvenate" the army without resorting to legislative changes and forcing young people to serve.

The million will come, but not right away

TThe program announced by the Ministry of Defense provides for voluntary service under a contract for citizens aged 18 to 24. For just one year of service, they are promised competitive pay and social guarantees that they do not have in civilian life.

Those willing to join the service are promised 1 million hryvnias ($23,901). According to Defense Ministry spokesman Dmytro Lazutkin, the remuneration will be paid in installments: 200,000 will be paid immediately after signing the contract, another 300,000 after training, and the rest after the contract expires. The soldiers will also receive a salary that depends on the performance of combat missions.

Men aged 18-24 will be able to choose their own place of military medical examination, military unit, and specialty. They will also receive compensation for rent during their service, full medical care, free travel, and utility benefits.

The preferences will continue after the end of the contract. For example, young men will be able to take out a mortgage at 0% per annum under the eOselya program, enroll in a desired university at state expense, and have the right to travel abroad.

Will soldiers who signed a contract before their 25th birthday be able to switch to new contracts? To this, Lazutkin replied that a legal examination may be required in this matter. However, the government has not yet provided for this possibility in its resolution. At the same time, he emphasized that this category of military will still be paid 1 million hryvnias.

An important point: under this program, young volunteers must join combat brigades. Currently, the list includes six brigades: 10th Brigade, 28th Brigade, 38th Brigade, 72nd Brigade, 92nd Brigade and 95th Brigade.

Defense Ministry spokesperson Dmytro Lazutin explained that the incentive contract will be signed for the positions that are currently needed in the army: rifleman, senior rifleman, sniper, medic, assistant grenade launcher, grenade launcher, senior grenade launcher, scout, and senior scout.

"When are we going to get rest?"

The soldiers interviewed by hromadske had different reactions to the initiative of the Ministry of Defense with motivational contracts for young people.

A 22-year-old soldier from the Tymur Special Operations Forces was mobilized at the age of 19, but he has not signed any contract. He is not sure that all the promises will be fulfilled. Although he is interested in the offer of a motivational contract, he will not be able to sign it. As the Ministry of Defense explained in a comment to hromadske, the resolution does not provide for this for those mobilized under the age of 25. At the same time, they will be entitled to 1 million hryvnias.

Dmytro, a 24-year-old soldier of the Special Operations Forces who signed a contract last year, can also apply for such a monetary incentive. In a comment to hromadske, he said that he supports such financial support for young people.

I have been saying since 2022 that people should be lured with financial 'perks' and not 'busified' because it will make no sense. The fact that this category will have a clear deadline is normal, because 18-20-year-olds are still children who may not be able to deal with it all, so they will have a choice: to continue or to resign.Dmytro, Special Operations Forces soldier

At the same time, the soldier noted that he is annoyed by the lack of service terms for other soldiers. He says that many operations "fail" simply because people are not motivated and are physically exhausted.

"They don't have time to get treatment because the government cannot properly organize mobilization for rotations. The society that is not ready to change people is also responsible. It is clear that we cannot talk about clear terms of service or demobilization, because there is no one to fight. This is a common fault of the state and the people," says Dmytro.

Instead, many soldiers claimed that such conditions are unfair to other soldiers. For example, combat medic Alina Mykhailova wrote that instead of appreciating those who have been in the ranks and risking their lives since 2014 or 2022, the state "simply ignores their needs."

"When I first mobilized, I was not paid for five months. And there are thousands of people like me. Some have not yet received payments for their injuries. Some are suing for compensation for their fallen fellow soldiers. But in the 12th year of the war, billions are suddenly found to attract new contract soldiers – with money, a social package and ‘bonuses’. And this is not just injustice. This is discrimination," Mykhailova argues.

Military serviceman Yevhen Spirin called the initiative with contracts "a short instruction on how to make a split" within the state.

It is a good start to create a spirit of brotherhood in the newest army, to foster respect and equality. "Serve, boys. Here's a million, a home, and then in a year you can go to Madeira. And these junkies, what do you expect from them? They're going to bite the dust right here, no one needs them, they're waste.Yevhen Spirin, journalist and serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Sergeant Yaroslav Movchun also spoke out about the contracts. He believes that the terms of the contract for young people are also not all right. In particular, mortgages are unaffordable because of the large down payment that a 20-year-old can hardly make after their service, as the military often spends money on equipment.

According to Movchun, the choice of a unit to serve in exists only formally, as soldiers can be transferred wherever there is a need. He also doubts whether young people will really be able to leave the army after the end of their contract.

"My personal opinion is that this is an outright defiance of those who have been performing combat missions for years. Many of them are simply underpaid, they have to buy electronic warfare devices and repair their vehicles at their own expense, or pay constant fees for this... And here: ‘Come, we'll give you a million hryvnias’. This will not improve anything at all," the soldier wrote.

Not only young people need preferences

Will incentive contracts help to increase youth mobilization? The Ministry of Defense believes so. Spokesperson for the ministry Andriy Lazutkin said that from the first day, he saw interest and "a certain excitement" caused by the announced program.

At the same time, the military experts with whom hromadske spoke do not undertake to predict anything, saying that it will take time to see how it will work.

"This is the first attempt of the Ukrainian government to make such decisions," said military expert Serhiy Zgurets.

He suggests that the state may have to further expand the range of preferences for young people.

I am not sure that the material component or the 'carrot policy' will be dominant now. In the conditions of total war, can we say that only material factors can ensure the replenishment of the army? Well, it sounds good in theory, but in practice, it still won't work.Serhiy Zgurets, military expert, director of the information and consulting company Defense Express

In addition to motivating young people, it is necessary to equalize social injustice—to give certain preferences to soldiers who have been fighting for a long time and are unable to leave their combat units.

Military expert Mykhailo Samus agrees: all active military personnel, regardless of age, should have incentives to serve and decent financial support.

"For six months now we have been proposing to consider the idea of creating a so-called recruitment fund from non-budgetary funds," he said.

The creation of such a fund would allow all citizens who went to serve in 2022 and those who are just thinking about joining the army to receive a one-time payment of at least $5,000, and then regularly receive sufficient financial support.

According to the expert, this fund could be filled from various sources: "We have rich people, we have rich businesses. Our foreign partners, who are now demanding that Ukraine mobilize more citizens, could also contribute to this fund."