Germany Approves a major shift in national defence policy as the Bundestag has voted to introduce a new voluntary military service system for young adults. The decision comes as Berlin reassesses its security priorities following the large scale Russian invasion of Ukraine and after Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for the creation of the most powerful conventional army in Europe. Under the new plan, every citizen who turns eighteen beginning in January 2026 will receive a questionnaire asking about their willingness to join the armed forces. The survey will be compulsory for men and optional for women. While participation in the service itself remains voluntary for now, the government wants to increase interest in military careers and encourage more young people to consider serving.
However, the announcement has sparked a wave of criticism among students across the country. Groups of young Germans in nearly ninety cities plan to walk out of school in protest. Organisers say they do not want their futures defined by military drill or preparation for conflict. They state that war destroys communities and offers no positive prospects for their generation. In Hamburg alone, school officials expect more than one thousand five hundred students to join the demonstrations. The vote in parliament saw three hundred twenty three members support the change while two hundred seventy two opposed it. This places Germany alongside several other European countries that are revisiting or reopening forms of military service. France recently confirmed a programme that offers ten months of voluntary military training for young citizens aged eighteen and nineteen.
New German Policy Introduces Voluntary Military Service Option For 18 Year Olds
Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has argued that the new system is essential for national readiness. Beginning in July 2027, all eighteen year old men will undergo a medical examination to determine their suitability for possible service in the event of a national emergency. Pistorius says the country cannot afford delays in identifying who is physically capable of defending the homeland. The Bundeswehr currently includes about one hundred eighty two thousand active personnel. The government aims to raise this number by twenty thousand within a year. The long term objective is to grow the force to two hundred sixty thousand active members, supported by two hundred thousand reservists. This expansion is intended to meet new requirements under the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and to reinforce Germanys defensive posture.
Although the programme is voluntary for now, officials admit that compulsory service could be reconsidered if the security situation deteriorates or if too few volunteers step forward. In a time of conflict, the military would use the answers from the questionnaires and the results of the medical exams to identify potential recruits quickly.Germany once maintained an army of nearly half a million during the Cold War. Compulsory service ended in 2011 under former chancellor Angela Merkel as part of a widespread reduction in military size. Rising tension in Europe and pressure from the United States government under President Donald Trump have now pushed Berlin to rebuild its capabilities.
The government has also offered competitive financial incentives. Recruits could earn around two thousand six hundred euros each month, significantly more than the amount offered to young volunteers in France.Alongside the military reform, the Bundestag prepared to vote on a separate pension reform bill that would freeze state pension levels until 2031. Internal divisions within the governing parties threatened its passage, but the opposition Left party announced it would abstain, reducing the number of votes needed for approval.
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source:BBC
