Ukraine Enlisting People in Their 40s and 50s to Fight Against Russia
Ukraine was put into a state of mayhem when Russia invaded it in 2022. Ukrainian authorities had to request civilians to join the war effort and go to the frontlines to fight for their country, BBC reported. The Ukrainian military has seen an influx of individuals in their 40s and 50s, who have willingly joined the army to save their homeland.
For many, the reasons for volunteering are personal by nature with the objective of 'revenge,' Fortune reported. 57-year-old grandmother, Liudmyla Menyuk signed up for the army in 2022 to avenge her son who had died fighting Russians almost a decade before the war. Menyuk also wants to go to the frontlines to spare the youth of her country. "I performed my duties well," she stated, "so I could save the life of a young Ukrainian."
This philosophy of saving youngsters from the bloodshed of war has been ingrained in Ukraine for a long time, Fortune reported. In Ukraine, you have to be 27 years or older to join the army. Due to the war with Russia, the age limit was brought down to 25 years.
Lawmaker Serhiy Rakhmanin, a member of the parliamentary committee for security and defense, shared that the country's authorities are holding back on sending people aged between 18 and 25 to the frontlines because they would need them in the future for rebuilding the nation, Fortune reported.
Another reason behind most of Ukraine's workforce being in their 40s is their demographics, Fortune reported. In the 1980s, the country went through a baby boom, implying that at present there are twice as many Ukrainians in their late thirties than people in their 20s in the population.
Many are serving out of love for their country, but are shocked at how long this battle has stretched, Fortune reported. Vitaliy Pryvrotskyi, who is in his 50s joined the forces along with other friends after the Russian attack. Being in force was not new for him, as he had previously served in the Soviet-Afghan war. He didn't expect the war to last this long. While he was on the frontlines fighting the enemy, his wife breathed her last due to a stroke. Pryvrotskyi believes the stroke was caused by the pain she was feeling because of his absence.
Rostyslav in his 40s is training in the Chernihiv region, while his wife and children wait for him in Odesa, BBC reported. Rostyslav's life changed when the Russians invaded Kyiv. He had to take the difficult call of leaving his home and job as a driver to serve his country. "I think this is the right thing to do," he says of the operation.
"Look how long they’ve been on our land. We’ve been suffering for so long, that we have to do something. You can't just sit there while they are capturing our territory. What will we do then? Will we become their slaves?"
The war hasn't been easy on Ukrainian authorities and people by any means, BBC reported. There is a massive difference in resources between Russia and Ukraine, which has caused Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy to time and again ask help from superpowers like the USA and England. The recent seizure of Kursk, a Russian territory, has rejuvenated the spirits of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians.
"We need to train, train and train again. The more we train the more we will learn here. It will help us on the frontline. Where will that be, I ask?". "We are ready to defend our land either in Donbas - or Kursk," Maxim, a 30-year-old builder by trade said, BBC reported.