The German government intends to increase the number of personnel in the country’s Armed Forces, to respond to current military challenges. There are no plans to reintroduce compulsory military service.
The German government approved a new program on Wednesday to encourage young people to perform military service, which should allow the army to recruit more soldiers to face growing threats from Russia.
If the bill passes both chambers, the program is expected to take effect in spring 2025.
However, It is not about reestablishing compulsory military servicesuspended since 2011, as some had been asking since the invasion of Ukraine reopened the debate on the need to reinforce the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr), which lack manpower and equipment.
Germany wants to encourage military service without making it mandatory
In light of the new bill, upon turning 18, men will be required, under penalty of a fine, to complete a form regarding “their willingness and ability to perform military service, as well as their diplomas and other qualifications,” explained a press release from the German government.
This new model is “the response to the evolution of the threat situation in Europe,” declared Defense Minister Boris Pistorius.
Women can “voluntarily participate” in the questionnaire, since the German Basic Law expressly limits men’s obligation to serve in the Armed Forces.
The bill stipulates that only people born after December 31, 2006 will be affected.
The idea behind the census is, on the one hand, to awaken the interest of young people and, on the other, to select for the army those who “seem particularly suitable and motivated” and then summon them for an interview, the same executive briefing note indicated. .
This new volunteer service provides a six-month basic training, voluntarily extendable up to a total of 23 months.
The bill “aims to increase the number of reservists in the medium term,” explained the German executive, who hopes to recruit about 200,000 more people.
With this model, the German Defense Minister initially foresees a reinforcement of 5,000 additional recruits starting in 2025, and more in the long term.
Berlin needs to “sustainably improve its defense capabilities” in the face of “a greatly intensified threat situation in Europe following Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine,” stressed the Government of Social Democrat Olaf Scholz.
The German army currently has 181,000 soldiers, a figure lower than the 203,300 expected in peacetime.
The Ministry of Defense estimates that between 370,000 and 460,000 soldiers would be needed to defend the country in the event of an attack on NATO.
Source: Observadora
