Ukraine drafts reinforcements for expected spring counteroffensive

Many Ukrainian men – even those working as volunteers or doing other useful jobs as civilians – cannot escape the draft, write Siobhan O'Grady and Kostiantyn Khudov

A Ukrainian armed forces mobilisation campaign poster in Kyiv reads: ‘Unbreakable, unconquered, unstoppable’ (Photo for The Washington Post by Alice Martins)

The men in uniform could show up almost anywhere, any time. They knock on civilians’ front doors and randomly stop them on street corners, handing out draft papers that can turn lives upside down.

Ukraine needs more soldiers – and fast. Kyiv is preparing for an imminent assault on Russian occupying forces, and while Ukraine does not disclose its casualty counts, commanders in the field have described large losses. In February, a German official said Berlin believed at least 120,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed or wounded since the start of the invasion.