Germany Approves Draft Law Requiring Young Men to Answer Voluntary Military Service Survey

A soldier fires a machine gun from a Leopard 2 tank at the Bundeswehr tank battalion 203 at the Field Marshal Rommel Barracks in Augustdorf, Germany, on Feb. 1, 2023. Martin Meissner/AP Photo

Germany’s cabinet has approved a draft law requiring young men to respond to a survey about their willingness to serve in the German military.

The country is seeking to boost troop numbers to meet NATO obligations without reinstating conscription, which was abolished in 2011.

Under the draft law, about 300,000 teenagers turning 18 in Germany next year will be required to inform the government about whether they are interested in serving in the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr.

Under the proposed model, teenage boys must fill out a digital survey. Girls will have the option of filling out the survey. Germany currently has 180,000 soldiers and wants to increase this number to 203,000 by 2031, along with adding 60,000 reservists.

The goal is to have a reserve force of about 200,000—expanding the country’s total military strength to about 460,000 troops in the event of war.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced a shift toward a more robust foreign and defense policy soon after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. It included the creation of a 100 billion euro special fund to bring the German military up to speed.

Under a budget deal in July, Germany’s coalition government agreed to keep defense spending above the NATO target of 2 percent of gross domestic product, with an additional 30 billion euros earmarked for 2028 to meet the target.

Leading politicians from all three parties in Scholz’s coalition expressed opposition to obligatory military service, with Scholz himself ruling out a return to mass conscription.

Boris Pistorius, Germany’s minister of defense, said the suspension of Germany’s obligatory military service in 2011 was a mistake.

He has vowed to turn Germany into a “war-ready” nation, warning that war between NATO and Russia could happen in five to eight years.

North Korea

On Nov. 4, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha discussed with his German counterpart, Annalena Baerbock, the “need for decisive action” in response to North Korea’s alleged involvement in the Ukraine–Russia conflict.

“We urge Europe to realize that [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] troops are now carrying [on] an aggressive war in Europe against a sovereign European state,” Sybiha said at a briefing after meeting with Baerbock in Kyiv.

The Pentagon has estimated that 10,000 North Korean troops have been deployed to eastern Russia for training.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, when asked on Oct. 24 about North Korean troops being sent to Russia, said it is up to Moscow how to interpret its mutual defense clause with Pyongyang.

“There is Article 4. We have never doubted in the least that the North Korean leadership takes our agreements seriously. But what we do within the framework of this article is our business,” Putin said.

‘Brink of Collapse’

Germany’s fractious coalition of left-leaning Social Democrats, the pro-business liberal Free Democratic Party, and ecology-promoting Greens is meeting this week for crisis talks on rescuing the economy from decline.

The parliament’s term will end in September 2025; however, some believe that the coalition could end shortly.

Richard Schenk, research fellow at the think tank MCC Brussels, told The Epoch Times that he believes that the coalition is “on the brink of collapse,” noting that media outlets have echoed these concerns and speculated that an announcement could come as early as Nov. 6 or Nov. 7.

“Basically, everyone knows it’s about to collapse,” Schenk said, attributing the delay to concerns over geopolitical tensions and the outcome of the U.S. presidential election.

He said that Germany’s economy, Europe’s largest, is expected to experience stagnation or even recession for a third consecutive year.