Under US pressure to bolster its armed forces so as to deter supposed Russian aspirations to invade NATO countries, Germany is moving toward reinstating military conscription, with the initial steps centering questionnaires and medical exams that will feed a database detailing each young man’s fitness, aptitude and willingness to serve. The plan was agreed upon by Germany’s coalition government on Thursday, and now goes to parliament, where the ruling coalition has a slim majority of 12 seats out of a 630 total.
If Germany reinstates conscription, holding a German passport means possibly fighting in a foreign war, while not holding a German passport means access to the welfare state.
The German government pays foreigners while contemplating sacrificing what is left of its native youth. pic.twitter.com/a1NZ1gfd7y
— Ralph Schoellhammer (@Raphfel) August 19, 2025
Today, the German armed forces — the Bundeswehr — has about 180,000 service members. The government said it was laying out a plan to have 260,000 people on active-duty service, with another 200,000 reservists, which is triple the current reserve force. In the first step, to be taken in 2026, the government will send questionnaires to every 18-year-old in the country. Men will be legally obliged to complete it; for women, it will be optional. The questionnaires will gauge respondents’ inclination and willingness to serve. Then, starting in July 2027, men will be required to report for a medical examination.
Germany drafted men for military service from 1956 until 2011, when the country adopted the US model of a professional, voluntary force. Rather than abolishing conscription — which would have required a constitutional amendment — it was merely suspended that year. Reinstating it would only require a simple majority of the parliament. However, unless the constitution is changed, women will remain exempt.
For now, conscription will not be put to a vote, as the government hopes to achieve its enormous military expansion — 44% growth in active-duty ranks — via recruitment of willing volunteers. “We will make voluntary service more attractive,” said Jens Spahn, parliamentary leader of the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) party. “We want to win over as many young people as possible for the service for the fatherland.” If that fails, however, “we’ll need to make it obligatory,” he added. Without providing details, the government has said a lottery system would be employed. The Bundeswehr will report on its recruitment efforts every six months, ready to request the reinstatement of conscription to make up any shortfalls.
A recent poll for Stern magazine found that a slim majority of Germans favored reinstating the draft. However, 63% of Germans between 18 and 29 years old opposed it.
German defense minister Boris Pistorius told Germans there was “no cause for concern…no reason for fear…The more capable of deterrence and defense our armed forces are, through armament through training and through personnel, the less likely it is that we will become a party to a conflict at all.” Pistorius and Chancellor Friedrich Merz have set a goal for having Europe’s largest military and to be “war-ready” by 2029. Doing its part to promote German militarism, the Wall Street Journal’s report on the conscription plan credulously cited unnamed “military analysts [who] think Russia may be able and willing to attack NATO” by that year.
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