All employees of Ukraine’s territorial recruitment centers (TCC) and service centers will be required to wear body cameras starting 1 September, Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal said on 7 August.

The new mandate requires staff to record video during document checks and draft notice deliveries.

“This step will help ensure transparency and legality in the work of enlistment offices’ teams, as well as protect the rights of both sides,” Shmyhal said.

Violations of the body camera requirement will result in disciplinary action, according to the Defense Ministry. Currently, approximately 85% of recruitment office staff have body cameras, with procurement efforts underway to secure additional devices.

The announcement follows mounting concerns over recruitment practices. In July, two Kyiv military officials faced charges after a conscript’s death. Media reports regularly document cases of recruitment office employees exceeding their authority.

Recent months have seen escalating tensions around mobilization efforts. On 1 August, protesters in Vinnytsia demanded the release of men detained by military recruitment offices, breaking into a stadium where detainees were held. Police launched an investigation on 2 August, charging five men aged 21-33 with seizing a state building.

Russian forces have targeted recruitment infrastructure in multiple strikes during June and July, hitting offices in Kryvyi Rih, Poltava, Kremenchuk, Kharkiv, and Zaporizhzhia. These attacks caused civilian and military casualties while damaging recruitment facilities.

The strikes represent an escalation in tactics aimed at disrupting Ukraine’s mobilization efforts and fueling social unrest, according to military analysts. Russian propaganda frequently uses mobilization reports to escalate social tensions and undermine recruitment campaigns.