The Ukrainian government has officially established a Recruitment Center for Foreigners and Stateless Persons within the National Guard, as announced by Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi on September 18. This initiative aims to enhance the recruitment process for foreign volunteers seeking to serve in the Ukrainian military.
According to Koretskyi, the center will centralize the recruitment pipeline, overseeing all phases from candidate screening and interviews to training. This streamlined approach is intended to expedite the deployment of foreign contract volunteers to combat units, reinforcing Ukraine’s defense efforts amid ongoing conflict.
The center will manage administrative tasks, including candidate interviews, background checks, and credential verification, ensuring that volunteers are adequately prepared for military service. Koretskyi emphasized the need for an efficient intake process to allow vetted volunteers to quickly join frontline units facing continued Russian aggression.
“Recruiting foreign volunteers to the Defense Forces is one of the state’s priorities. The task is to scale up this work and attract more people to the Ukrainian army who are ready to defend our state together with Ukrainians,” Koretskyi stated.
Formalizing Military Service
The establishment of this center reflects Ukraine’s commitment to institutionalizing foreign participation within its military framework. Since the onset of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, thousands of international volunteers have joined various branches of the Defense Forces, primarily through the International Legion. The new center aims to formalize recruitment standards, enhance operational vetting, and eliminate bureaucratic delays.
Under its new mandate, the National Guard will guide candidates through the necessary legal documentation, medical evaluations, and specialized combat training before they are assigned to operational brigades. Officials noted that standardizing the recruitment process will improve integration between foreign personnel and regular Ukrainian units, offering clear contractual guarantees, competitive compensation, and medical coverage comparable to that of domestic service members.
Broader Recruitment Initiatives
This push to expand foreign recruitment aligns with broader efforts to replenish and retain personnel within the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). Concurrently, the military is preparing to conclude its temporary simplified return program for service members who left their units without official leave, which is set to end on September 20, as reported by the General Staff of the AFU.
Military authorities have observed a significant increase in voluntary returns, with more soldiers rejoining active duty in August 2026 than those departing without authorization. Under the current framework, service members who left their posts before June 12, 2026, can voluntarily resume active duty with considerable procedural flexibility, including the option to select their military branch and operational role while retaining standard pay and protections.
However, the General Staff has clarified that this simplified return mechanism does not apply to unauthorized departures after the June 12 cutoff, which remain subject to standard legal prosecution under Ukrainian law. This approach reflects Kyiv’s careful balance between maintaining military discipline and recovering trained personnel for frontline operations.
