KIEV, October 19 (RIA Novosti) - Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced Saturday he was going to sign a demobilization decree next week that would allow conscript soldiers to opt for volunteer military.
“I have prepared a decree – to be issued next week – that will demobilize all those who want to serve on contract. What for? Because it’s only fair to serve in the army and earn more,” Poroshenko said during an interview with several TV channels.
This came after hundreds of Ukrainian servicemen rallied on Monday outside the presidential administration building in downtown Kiev to demand that they be sent home.
The Ukrainian authorities have conducted three waves of army mobilization after a conflict broke out in the country’s east. The government later admitted it was dealing with multiple cases of draft evasion.
In mid-April, Kiev launched a military operation against independence supporters in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions. The United Nations estimates that some 3,700 people have been killed and over 8,800 have been wounded since the start of the crackdown.
