The General Staff of the Ukrainian Army announced on Tuesday that it had issued a ban on men between the ages of 18 and 60 leaving their homes without special permission from the relevant military authority. He referred to the law from 1992, which foresees this step during a state of war. This has been in effect in Ukraine since the beginning of the Russian invasion.
Later, the army issued a clarification, according to which men of military age will only be allowed to cross the borders of the areas without permission. There are 24 of these in Ukraine, and up to several million people live in each. In the original version of the regulation, it was stated that the restrictions would apply to districts, i.e. lower territorial-administrative units within regions, reminds the Unian agency.
The order caused an uproar among Ukrainians
Within a short time, hundreds of outraged Ukrainians commented on the regulations on social networks, some accusing the Ministry of Defense of “idiocy”, the DPA agency reported. According to them, the measures will encourage corruption in the district military offices. Others voiced fears of even greater economic chaos.
“I see that (…) there is misunderstanding and even indignation in society. I ordered the Minister of Defense, the Chief of the General Staff, and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to report to me on all the details during tomorrow’s (Wednesday – editor’s note) regular meeting of the General Staff,” Zelenskyy said. “I ask the General Staff not to make such decisions without me in the future,” he added. He promised the public that he would deal with the matter personally.
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