Kiev uses McDonald’s to replenish depleted army ranks
The Ukrainian military has turned to fast food in a bid to lure more young recruits into the army’s ranks. A fresh video published by the nation’s Defense Ministry on TikTok tells its target audience just how many cheeseburgers they can afford by joining the country’s forces to fight Russia.
The short clip shows a man dressed in plain clothes coming out of a McDonald’s. The man asks, “How many cheeseburgers can be bought for 1 million hryvnas ($24,000)?” and goes on to reveal that 15,625 burgers can be bought for that sum in Ukraine. A person aged between 18 and 24 can get the necessary amount by signing a contract with the Defense Ministry, he adds.
The video is part of Kiev’s attempts to recruit more soldiers in the face of heavy casualties in its conflict with Russia and a mobilization campaign marred by widespread draft dodging and desertion.
In February, the Defense Ministry announced “special contracts” for volunteers aged 18 to 24, promising the equivalent of $24,000 for one year’s service, with $5,400 paid upfront and the remainder distributed over the service period.
Those under 25 years old are exempt from conscription. However, social media users accused the military of trying to “organize the genocide of Ukrainian youth at a very cheap cost.”
“They are measuring the lives of our children in cheeseburgers,” one wrote. “This is cynical, I have no words,” another said. Some also said that no amount of money was worth going to the front lines. Many commenters also argued that the ministry’s “special contract” for youths is “discriminatory” against other Ukrainian servicemen, who receive much smaller salaries.
Kiev significantly tightened its mobilization regulations last year and lowered the conscription age from 27 to 25. The measures have failed to boost enlistment or replenish battlefield losses, however. Ukraine’s Western backers have demanded that Kiev lower the mobilization age to 18, a suggestion Vladimir Zelensky has described as politically unworkable.
In 2022, Ukraine declared a general mobilization, prohibiting most men aged 18 to 60 from leaving the country. Millions did, however, through corruption and graft. Recruiters have begun raiding public places for potential conscripts, leading to violent confrontations with those trying to evade the draft.
