Ukraine extends martial law and general mobilisation until 2026
Ukraine's parliament on Tuesday approved a budget amendment that boosts the defence budget by $7.7bn, and extended martial law and general mobilisation until February 2026.
The extension, requested by President Volodymyr Zelensky, was approved by Kyiv MPs with a two-thirds majority.
Martial law and mobilisation were first imposed for 30 days after Russia's invasion in February 2022 and have since been regularly extended.
Under the law, men aged 22 to 60 fit for military service are banned from leaving Ukraine. The ban had also applied to those aged 18 to 22 until August, and its lifting led to a rise in the number of young people leaving the country. Men over 25 are eligible for mobilisation, so some avoid leaving home to evade military recruitment patrols. Compulsory mobilisation has not been declared for 18-to-25-year-olds, although volunteers can join.
Financially, a large part of the budget is allocated to defence, and Ukraine relies on its allies for help. Kyiv is currently seeking extra funds from European countries to buy US military equipment under a programme known as PURL.
According to the Ukrainian Finance Ministry, 63% of the country's budget was allocated to financing the military in the first nine months of the year.
Since the war began in February 2022, Ukraine has received aid totalling about $152bn from its allies.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
