Ukraine is in the final stages of drafting recruitment reforms to attract 18- to 25-year-olds who are currently exempt from mobilisation as it looks for ways to bolster its fighting force, the battlefield commander recently appointed to the President's Office said. In his first interview with foreign media since taking up his new position last fall, Deputy Head of the Office of the President Colonel Pavlo Palisa said Ukraine is exploring new recruitment options because the current drafting system inherited from Soviet times is hindering progress. While Ukraine passed a mobilisation law last spring and lowered the age of conscription from 27 to 25 years old, the measures have not had the impact needed to replenish its ranks or replace battlefield losses in its war with Russia. One initiative is what Palisa described as an honest contract," a plan that includes financial incentives, clear guarantees for training, and measures to ensure dialogue between soldiers and their commanders. T