Ukrainian police says force 'maxed out' supporting military as law enforcers mobilized

Commenting on proposals to mobilize 100,000 law enforcement officers, the head of the National Police, Ivan Vyhivskyi, said in an interview with Ukrainian News that they are already "involved to the maximum in the Security and Defense Forces."

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"Regarding the proposal to mobilize 100,000 policemen, I can say that we are already maximally involved in the composition of the Security and Defense Forces, and we also take care of the domestic front and security inside the country," he said.

According to Vyhivskyi, those law enforcement officers who could and wanted to go to the front did. He explained that the National Police "cannot transfer people to the Armed Forces", like, for example, the SBU security service.

"The SBU can, because they are military personnel. We have special ranks, and we cannot transfer them. We have only one algorithm – resignation. Those who wanted to fight also had the opportunity to join the Liut brigade," the head of the National Police said.

Police officers with the rank of officer, who, for example, transfer to the Armed Forces, go there as privates, if they did not serve in the army or study at a military department. For those policemen who serve in Liut, the rank and the place from which they went to fight are kept.

The proposal to mobilize 100,000 law enforcement officers was put forward on December 11 by political and military analyst, ATO veteran, former company commander in the "Aidar" battalion, Yevhen Dykyi when he asked: "Do we really need 250,000 law enforcement officers in the rear?"

Vyhivskyi replied that now the National Police has 120,000 rather than 250,000 police officers.