Budanov proposes creating a unified center for recruiting foreigners into the Ukrainian Armed Forces

Head of the Ukrainian President’s Office Kyrylo Budanov put forward an initiative to establish a unified coordination center for recruiting foreign nationals into military service in the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

This was reported by Ukrainian outlets following a meeting at the President’s Office with military officials and members of parliament.

According to Budanov, recruitment and training of foreigners are currently carried out by various structures, which hampers coordination.

“Ukraine needs to create a unified coordination center for recruiting foreigners into military service. It should be a structural unit covering all stages: from search, selection, and transportation to training, support, and other needs of foreign nationals,” he said.

Deputy Head of the President’s Office Pavlo Palisa stated that some of the training of foreigners could be taken on by individual units of the Armed Forces and the National Guard. The meeting also addressed the issue of bringing in interpreters.

The participants agreed to prepare proposals by the end of May for establishing such a unit within the Ministry of Defense, as well as for making the necessary legislative amendments.

Previously, Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov had stated that the problems of mobilization and mass desertion were planned to be addressed in part by recruiting foreigners into the ranks of the Armed Forces. At the same time, some Ukrainian volunteers spoke out against this idea from the Ministry of Defense.