Rada approves extension of martial law, general mobilization until August 6 – MP

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The Verkhovna Rada has extended the martial law, reported MP Yaroslav Zhelezniak (Holos faction).

"The Parliament ... approved No. 13172 ... - extension until August 6 ... of martial law," Zhelezniak wrote on Telegram on Wednesday.

According to him, 357 deputies voted for bill No. 13172 on the approval of the presidential decree "On extending the term of martial law in Ukraine" at a plenary session of parliament on Wednesday.

According to the law, the martial law will be extended for 90 days, from 5:30 a.m. on May 9.

Later, Zhelezniak reported that bill No. 13173 "On extending the term of general mobilization" was supported by 346 deputies. Only Honcharenko voted against again, and MP from the Servant of the People party Heorhiy Mazurashu abstained.

"The Rada adopted bill No. 13173 - extension of the general mobilization until August 6," Zhelezniak wrote on Telegram on Wednesday.

The law also extends the period of general mobilization by 90 days from May 9.

Zhelezniak recalled that the parliament of this convocation has already voted 15 times to extend the terms of martial law and general mobilization since the beginning of the full-scale aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

As reported earlier, MP Oleksiy Honcharenko said that on Wednesday he would vote against extending mobilization and martial law. Among the reasons he cited were the lack of a demobilization procedure and terms of service for the military, as well as the mobilization of citizens "on the streets" and the lack of "adequate recruitment."

However, MP of the same faction, a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Iryna Friz, stated that these bills are "a clear signal to the aggressor against the backdrop of quasi-negotiations on peaceful ideas of different parties; Ukraine chooses to fight."

Head of the Servant of the People faction, David Arakhamia, called the deputies who spoke out against extending martial law "cosmonauts from the Verkhovna Rada" and noted that they were making such statements after the Russian occupiers' strikes on Sumy and Kryvyi Rih, as well as during the enemy offensive. "There are no words. Only letters, mostly from the end of the alphabet. ‘War fatigue’ is taking its toll after an exhausting foreign mission," he joked.