Lindsey Graham, visiting Kyiv, urges Ukraine to pass mobilization law
Alles anzeigenKYIV — Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) called on Ukrainian lawmakers Monday to quickly pass a mobilization bill that would make more citizens eligible to be drafted into the military, and sharply questioned exempting men under 27 from the fight.
Graham called for the swift legislative action — even as U.S. lawmakers remain unable to reach their own consensus on aid for Ukraine — while visiting Kyiv, his first trip to the Ukrainian capital since abruptly turning against a $60 billion aid package for the country last month.[...]
Ukraine is already short of soldiers and ammunition, and Russia is advancing on the battlefield, having recently seized the eastern city of Avdiivka after a Ukrainian retreat. Ukraine’s new mobilization law, which has been under debate for months as Ukraine faces a severe shortage of battle-ready troops, proposes lowering the country’s draft age to 25. Although citizens can voluntarily join the military starting at age 18, and men between 18 and 60 are banned from leaving the country under martial law, the draft has until now protected younger men — many of whom are students — from being forcibly mobilized.
“I would hope that those eligible to serve in the Ukrainian military would join. I can’t believe it’s at 27,” he told reporters Monday. “You’re in a fight for your life, so you should be serving — not at 25 or 27.”
“We need more people in the line,” he said.
He also urged Ukrainians not to base their decisions to join the military on whether or not the United States continues to support them. “No matter what we do, you should be fighting,” he said. “No matter what we do, you’re fighting for you.” [...]
Graham has made several trips to Ukraine since 2022 and has repeatedly advocated for more aid for Ukraine. But he reversed course last month and voted against an urgently needed aid package, saying Donald Trump was “dead set” against it and would prefer to negotiate such aid as loan packages.
In Kyiv on Monday, he pushed for that approach.
“I was very direct with President Zelensky. You can expect me to always be in your corner, but it’s not unfair for me to ask you and other allies: Pay us back down the road, if you can,” Graham said. “I think the loan idea is going to be pretty popular, not just among Republicans but also among Democrats.” [...]
Also wir leihen Euch das Geld jetzt (vielleicht) nur noch, anstatt es euch einfach zu schenken, aber dafür müsst ihr Euch schon ein bisschen mehr anstrengen und mehr Menschenmaterial in den Fleischwolf werfen. Hinterher wird natürlich abgerechnet,