Ukraine wants to end consular services for men of military age abroad

Kyiv – Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday it would restrict consular services for Ukrainian military-age men who have left the country, potentially cutting off their ability to renew passports or access other essential civilian services.

It is believed that thousands of Ukrainian men have left their country rather than risk being drafted to help defend against Russia’s ongoing invasion, even as martial law bans men aged 18 and over from traveling abroad to travel. Thousands of others were already living abroad, mostly to work or study, when Russia invaded in February 2022.

The restriction of consular services is in line with a recently passed law on military mobilization, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on X, formerly Twitter.

The law is intended to help Ukraine overcome a severe shortage of soldiers on the front lines, in part by expanding the pool of men eligible to be drafted.

Those living outside Ukraine who are able to fight should not expect the same treatment as those who have remained in Ukraine – a restoration of “a fair attitude towards men of draft age in Ukraine and abroad,” according to Kuleba.

“A stay abroad does not relieve a citizen of his or her duties to the home country,” Kuleba wrote. However, he did not provide further details on the changes, saying only that the ministry would “provide further clarification” in the near future.

The mobilization law, passed by Ukraine’s parliament earlier this month, simplified the conscription process and could add hundreds of thousands of additional troops to the country’s military.

Field commanders have reported an acute shortage of soldiers, especially infantry, and say they are battling an invading Russian army that enjoys a significant advantage in troops, weapons and ammunition.

The mobilization law, which comes into effect next month, requires all men between the ages of 18 and 60 to update their personal information at their military registration office within 60 days. By law, those who do not register and live abroad should be denied consular services.

Men aged 25 to 60 can be drafted into the army, but Ukrainian officials passed legislation at the start of the Russian invasion banning men aged 18 and over from leaving the country.

The problems on Kiev’s front lines were exacerbated by a months-long delay in US approval of a $60 billion military aid package, which was blocked by Republicans in Congress. The House of Representatives passed the relief bill on Saturday, and the Senate is expected to approve it on Tuesday.

“What it looks like now,” Kuleba wrote. “A man of draft age went abroad, showed his state that he does not care about its survival, and then comes and wants to receive services from this state. It doesn’t work this way. Our country is at war.”

“The main priority is to protect our homeland from destruction,” he said.

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