Germany returns to compulsory military service. “It’s wartime.” What will Romania do?

Germany returns to compulsory military service. “It’s wartime.” What will Romania do?

The CDU-CSU alliance, currently Germany’s largest opposition party, approved a motion by its youth wing at a party conference calling for a temporary return to conscription.

The Conservatives have already pledged to introduce a year of compulsory community service for young people, which could be completed in the military or by working in civil society.

Germany returns to compulsory military service. “It’s Wartime”

But the youth wing argued that this would take too long and proposed a period of compulsory service for a “requisite number” of soldiers.

According to the resolution, the German army – the Bundeswehr – will determine its requirements each year and according to this, a corresponding number of eligible citizens will be called up.

The proposal was approved by a “large majority” at a party conference on Tuesday, conservative politician Serap Guler wrote on X, according to barrons.com.

“We must not leave the defense of our democracy to the principle of hope,” said Johannes Winkel, president of the conservatives’ youth wing.

He said conscription was a “short-term” and realistic option to solve the Bundeswehr’s personnel problems.

Germany suspended conscription in 2011, but the conflict in Ukraine has reignited the debate over whether young men and women should be forced to fight for their country.

Despite a concerted recruitment drive, the Bundeswehr received only 18,802 new members in 2023 — just 27 more than in 2022.

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Daniel Guenther, the conservative premier of the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, was among those who voted for the resolution.

Compulsory military service would be “a visible sign to Russia and others” that Germany is seriously prepared to defend itself, he said.

What will Romania do?

Romania has not questioned the return to compulsory military service. President Klaus Iohannis recently declared that “it is not feasible, we are in no way prepared for such a thing”.

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For his part, the Minister of Defense, Angel Tîlvăr, stated that the reintroduction of compulsory military service in Romania is excluded and there is no discussion in this regard.

The Romanian army has decreased from 320,000 men to 80,000 and there is a need to train new cadres, but this can only be done on a voluntary basis, people between the ages of 18 and 35.

“Compulsory military service is excluded, there is no discussion at this time about such a thing”, declared Tîlvăr