The German coalition parties CDU/CSU and SPD have agreed on a new, semi-voluntary military service that will come into effect from January 2026. A month ago there also seemed to be an agreement, but it was resolutely rejected by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD). On Thursday morning, Pistorius said of the new design: “I am very satisfied.”
In Germany, conscription was suspended in 2011. The government of Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU) wants to ‘reactivate’ military service in a new form. However, Pistorius’ SPD was strongly against a real duty.
According to the agreement, next year all eighteen-year-olds, i.e. everyone born in 2008, will receive a questionnaire about education, fitness and interest in military service. Men are obliged to answer the questions, women are not. All men are then required to undergo an inspection. Because the capabilities of the current Bundeswehr are not sufficient to immediately accommodate all eighteen-year-olds next year, in practice not all eighteen-year-olds will be called up.
After the questionnaire and the inspection, the mandatory part for the young men is over: enlistment remains voluntary. However, it is made as attractive as possible: with a reasonable salary of around 2,600 euros per month and an initially short term of six months. Those who stay for a year will receive an allowance for obtaining a driver’s license or a truck driver’s license.
Germany wants to have “the strongest conventional army” in Europe, and for that it needs much more manpower. The professional army currently consists of approximately 182,000 men and women; By 2035, according to Pistorius, that number should be 260,000, plus at least 200,000 reservists (currently around 100,000). The semi-voluntary conscription is intended to increase the number of professional soldiers and reservists.
Anyone who remains employed for a year will receive an allowance for obtaining a driver’s license
The number of men employed per year, which is necessary to solve personnel shortages, will have to increase every year. The Bundeswehr currently has little capacity for the new conscription: there is a lack of trainers and barracks. In recent months, it has been estimated that there will be an increase of 15,000 eighteen-year-olds in 2026. By 2031, the Bundeswehr should be able to train around 40,000 recruits per year. According to the Ministry of Defense, an estimated 300,000 eighteen-year-olds would be eligible for military service each year.
Emergency draw
If the number of volunteers falls short of the required number of recruits, the Bundestag can decide that a number of young men will still be obliged to serve. This only happens if there is a serious staff shortage or an acute threat. Men can then be obliged by drawing lots through the decision in the Bundestag.
In the first draft for the new conscription, not all men would be tested, and the lottery system would come into effect when not enough men were tested. Minister Pistorius did not want that, because then the lots would have to be drawn at an earlier stage. Now that draw remains a means of emergency, according to the draft an ‘ultima ratio’.
NEW: Give this item as a gift
As an NRC subscriber you can subscribe every month 10 items give as a gift to someone without an NRC subscription. The recipient can read the article directly, without a paywall.