Ukrainian men charged over killing of army draft officer

By Dan Peleschuk

(Reuters) - Ukrainian prosecutors charged two men on Sunday over the killing of an army draft officer in the central Poltava region, leading a top general to call for swift punishment as he warned of growing disrespect towards members of the military.

One of the suspects, who was being driven to a military training centre on Friday with other conscripts, called an acquaintance who then arrived at the scene and shot dead one of the accompanying officers, the Prosecutor General's office said.

The two men fled but were arrested a few hours later, the office said in a statement, adding that police had seized a hunting rifle, ammunition and two cases of hand grenades from the alleged shooter.

One suspect was charged with obstructing the military and murder, and the other with aiding and abetting military obstruction.

Ukraine's war mobilisation campaign has been in the spotlight as military analysts and Western officials describe Ukraine's manpower shortage at the front as a key battlefield weakness.

The call-up effort has been marked by faltering enthusiasm for service amid reports of draft-office corruption, poor training and instances of weak battlefield command, and attacks on draft officers or recruiting centres are not uncommon.

Mykhailo Drapatyi, the commander of Ukraine's ground forces, condemned the draft officer's killing on Sunday, describing it as "a red line that cannot be crossed" and calling for the perpetrators to be swiftly punished.

"We have no right to silently observe the growing wave of contempt toward defenders of Ukraine," Drapatyi said in a statement on social media.

(Reporting by Dan Peleschuk; Editing by Helen Popper)