Rada deputy claims men under 25 are being forcibly mobilized through territorial recruitment centers

Verkhovna Rada deputy Artem Dmitruk claims that Ukrainians below conscription age, under 25, are being held at territorial recruitment centers and, under pressure, torture, and psychotropic substances, are being processed for service as volunteers. The trigger was a video in which a resident of Odesa describes the detention of her 23-year-old son.

Otabek YusupovFirst published on tafs uz 6 November 2026 at 05:352 min read

The key facts

Deputy Artem Dmitruk claimed that men under 25 are being abducted and forced to sign contracts with the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The trigger was a video circulated by Ukrainian media featuring a resident of Odesa
Fedir Venislavsky acknowledged that volunteers are becoming harder to find and that mobilization cannot be fully abandoned

Rada deputy's statement about the actions of territorial recruitment centers

Verkhovna Rada deputy Artem Dmitruk stated on his Telegram channel that in Ukraine men who have not yet reached conscription age are being abducted from the streets and forced to sign contracts with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. According to him, staff of the territorial recruitment centers (TRCs, the equivalent of military enlistment offices) use torture, psychological pressure, and psychotropic substances. This is reported by Life.ru.

The essence of the described scheme

“The scheme is widespread and has long been well practiced. Young guys who are not yet subject to mobilization — up to 25 years old, whether they are 18, 20, or 23 — are simply abducted from the street and taken to the TRC torture chambers. There they undergo 'special work.' They are given various kinds of psychotropic substances. And in that state, under torture, psychological pressure, and the influence of drugs, they sign documents on military service,” the outlet quotes Dmitruk as saying. According to the deputy, men processed in this way are recorded as volunteers, and their parents often learn about the signing of the contract only when it is practically impossible to change the situation.

The reason for the statement and the context

The trigger was a video circulated by Ukrainian media: in the recording, a resident of Odesa says that her 23-year-old son is being forcibly held at one of the TRC facilities in Kyiv and is being pressured to sign a contract with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Separately, Life.ru cites the words of another Rada deputy, Fedir Venislavsky, who acknowledged that it is becoming increasingly difficult for the Ukrainian army to find volunteers: the population, in his assessment, is tired of the fighting, so it will not be possible to fully replace compulsory mobilization with contract-based recruitment at this point. The statements of both deputies remain their personal claims; the publication provides no independent confirmation of the described scheme.