The German cabinet returns to voluntary military service, and opened the door to recruitment

The Council of Ministers in Germany passed a bill that will provide voluntary military service. The bill can also lead to recruitment if more forces are needed.

It is part of a step to strengthen German national defenses, after Russia has been widely invaded to Ukraine.

The compulsory military service in Germany ended in 2011 under the leadership of Angela Merkel.

Counselor Friedrich Mirz made the army’s strengthening in Germany a priority given the threat from Russia and said, “We are now returning to the military service army.”

He summarized his thinking earlier this year, saying: “We want to be able to defend ourselves so that we do not have to defend ourselves.”

Germany’s plans are also following the calls of US President Donald Trump to Europe to take more responsibility for its defense.

When his government’s government reached his position earlier this year, borrowing restrictions were eased to enable an increase in defense spending and then announced plans for 3.5 % of the economic production of defense during the next four years.

Defense Secretary Boris Pistorius wants to increase the number of soldiers in service from 182,000 to 260,000 by the early thirties of the twentieth century to meet the new NATO goals and enhance Germany’s defenses.

The Ministry of Defense also wants to increase the number of reserve soldiers to 200,000.

In the future, all 18 years old, men and women, will be sent to an online questionnaire asking whether they are ready to volunteer in military service. It will include questions about their physical fitness.

Men will be asked to complete the model, but it will be voluntary for women.

Quintin Gartner, 18, who chairs the country’s federal students’ conference, said his generation wants to contribute to the defense of German democracy – but the voices of young people must be heard.

“We can only play our role and take responsibility for our society when we include in all the decision -making process that affects our generation,” he told the BBC. “The Ministry of Defense has not reached us yet … it can contact me at any time.”

In a statement, the government said that military service will be voluntary for as long as possible.

However, he said that if the security situation increases or if there are very few volunteers, the government can decide to use coercion with the approval of the German parliament, Bundestag.

The Deutschlandfunk Radiosslio Radious said he expected the military service to remain voluntary.

“With the attractive wage and attractive military service, I am very confident that we will succeed in attracting young people and women to the Bundzuher,” he said.

In recent years, the Ministry of Defense has risen to advertising campaigns and job events in an attempt to employ soldiers.

In the first six months of this year, Bundeswehr recorded an increase of 28 % in the number of new recruits, compared to the same period last year.

Some members of the Democratic Democratic Party in Pistorius criticized the coalition’s novice partner, saying that the Bundzuher must be a more attractive business owner, rather than re -introducing compulsory military service.

The members of the consultant’s governors have warned that insisting on approval by Bundestag before re -recruitment can delay things too much.

Some commentators asked whether this is the right step for Germany.

Johannes Anjman, who writes to MDR’s general broadcaster, said that the military service will steal the younger generation of “time and money”. Instead, he argued with improved professional army.

“We don’t want anything with the wars of the ruling classes and we are not ready to die for a country increasingly reduces social infrastructure. We will not fight your wars!”.