Razumkov opposes depriving all men 25+ who enter higher, pre-higher and vocational education institutions right to deferment
Head of the cross-party parliamentary group Smart Politics and former Speaker of Ukraine’s parliament, Dmytro Razumkov (independent), has spoken out against an initiative to revoke draft deferrals for all men over the age of 25 who enroll in higher, pre-higher, or professional education institutions.
"They tell us there is a total shortage of people at the front, so they decided to take away deferrals from those who are studying and are 25+. Ask yourselves: how did people who are not actually studying get enrolled in the first place? Who took the money? The next question is: why aren’t you expelling them if they are studying poorly? Why are you taking this deferral away from everyone — from those who are studying, from those who are obtaining an education, from those who will work for the benefit of our state after receiving a diploma?" Razumkov said during a Verkhovna Rada session on Wednesday.
In his view, such a decision could lead to an outflow of these people abroad.
As reported earlier, the head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Education, Science and Innovation, Serhiy Babak, said that parliament may strip men over the age of 25 who enroll in higher, pre-higher, and professional education institutions of the right to a mobilization deferral. A draft law to that effect is currently being prepared.
At the end of 2025, Oleh Sharov, Director General of the Directorate for Higher Education and Adult Education at the Ministry of Education and Science, stated that one of the challenges of the 2025 admissions campaign was the creation of less accommodating conditions for those seeking to use enrollment as a way to obtain a mobilization deferral.