Germany has a shortage of nearly 60,000 soldiers. The new parliamentary commissioner for the armed forces, Henning Otte, claims that the introduction of compulsory military service is inevitable.
The voluntary nature of military service, which Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government is counting on, will not be enough, Otte told ARD. The new parliamentary commissioner for the armed forces has spoken out in support of compulsory military service in Germany.
The issue will be back on the agenda this year
The German government supports voluntary service in the army, but Henning Otte plans to "bring up for discussion" the issue of returning to compulsory service this year. According to him, the Bundeswehr is under great pressure, which should not be increased further.
“It is not possible to burden the soldiers more and more“, he said. The plenipotentiary for armed forces doubts that the federal government's decision, which continues to rely on voluntary service, will be sufficient in the future.
Pistorius: Nearly 60,000 new soldiers are needed
The need for armed forces within NATO will increase in the coming years. German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said before the NATO meeting in Brussels that according to some preliminary estimates, Germany needs about 50,000 to 60,000 additional soldiers who would be permanently available.
Minister Pistorius is not sure whether the current size of the armed forces in Germany will be sufficient if voluntary military service is maintained. At the same time, he drew attention to the fact that one of the central problems facing the expansion of the army is the lack of infrastructure - an insufficient number of barracks, some of which are in poor condition, a lack of command staff, etc.
Lack of capacity in the barracks and other problems
According to him, the introduction of mandatory military service is pointless if there is not enough capacity in the barracks, as well as good opportunities for training soldiers. Therefore, he called for these issues to be resolved as a priority. "Until then, the voluntary nature of military service remains in force," Pistorius said.
In view of the growing military threat from Russia, NATO plans to adopt new directives on the defense capabilities of member states. In addition to higher defense spending, there will also be talk of increasing the number of military personnel. Many of the details of this decision are still confidential, ARD notes.