Age does not matter: Zelensky commented on the possibility of mobilisation from 18 years old

Ukraine is facing a shortage of weapons to supply the already existing brigades, so the age of soldiers is being put on the back burner. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this during a press conference.

As for the age. If a man is standing in front of you without a weapon, what difference does it make whether he is 20 or 30 years old? There is no difference. Our partners emphasise the physical training of the military, but for us it is more important that we have "naked" brigades," the head of state said.

Zelenskyy recalled that Ukraine had earlier discussed with its allies to hold training sessions for at least 12 Ukrainian brigades abroad. The initiative was to be led by the USA and European countries, distributing the training among themselves. However, according to him, only two brigades have received such training so far - one in France and the other in Germany.

If we have only two brigades out of the planned 12, we are talking about weapons, not people. Yes, the shortage of people is also tangible, but the priority now is to equip our brigades with weapons," Zelensky stressed.

In addition, the president recently clarified that lowering the minimum age of mobilisation to 18 is not being discussed either in parliament or in the Office of the President. According to Zelensky, such proposals coming from individual partners do not correspond to the current realities of the war.

In an interview with the French publication Le Parisien, Zelensky said that the key factor for the army is technological equipment, not the age of soldiers. He emphasised that modern warfare requires not only physical endurance, but also the ability to work with high-tech equipment.

Now the minimum age of mobilised soldiers in Ukraine is set at 25. Zelenskyy called the proposals to lower it to 18 political speculations that do not solve the main problem - the shortage of weapons.