Military Commissioner proposes return of the pattern

Status: 02.06.2023 2:32 p.m

In 2011, conscription was suspended – and according to the chancellor and defense minister, it should stay that way. The Commissioner for the Armed Forces is now suggesting that all young people should at least have their military service fitness examined.

With a view to recruiting young people for the Bundeswehr, the Armed Forces Commissioner Eva Högl suggested inviting all young people of the same age group to be drafted in the future. In an interview with the news portal t-online, the SPD politician spoke out against a return to conscription. But she finds the idea of ​​a mandatory “year of service for Germany” that can be completed in the civilian or military sector “worthy of discussion”.

Specifically, Högl suggested that the Bundeswehr could advertise for young people at all schools in Germany. When young officers speak in front of schoolchildren, it is “not aggressive advertising, but clarifies the work of the Bundeswehr,” said the military commissioner. However, this is not allowed everywhere. In Baden-Württemberg, for example, the Bundeswehr has been banned from advertising in schools since 2014.

Defense Minister Pistorius thinks the suspension of conscription was a mistake. But is there a return?
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Högl: Let people decide for themselves

“You could, like in Sweden, invite an entire class of young people for the Bundeswehr to be drafted and then, if they are fit for military service, let them decide for themselves whether they want to volunteer or not.” This pattern should then be aimed at all genders, Högl demanded.

Overall, the Commissioner for the Armed Forces called for more efforts to recruit enough personnel for the Bundeswehr. “Even after the end of the war in Ukraine, we must be prepared against the threat of an aggressor, be it Russia or someone else,” she said. Germany will have to continue to operate “international crisis management”. “That’s why we have to invest in recruiting now. That’s even more important than the material challenge.” She also spoke out in favor of strengthening the reserve.

Reversing the suspension of compulsory military service does not help, however. “We don’t have enough trainers and we don’t have enough infrastructure for that.”

Sharp criticism from the Left Party

Högl’s proposals met with sharp criticism from the Left Party. “The mandatory screening demanded by the military commissioner would be a step towards the militarization of society,” said the party’s federal director, Tobias Bank.

There is no real threat that would justify such interventions in young people’s right to self-determination. “Instead of a militarization of society, we need a demilitarization of foreign policy,” Bank said, emphasizing his party’s stance.

“Ad hoc this is not feasible”

Högl’s proposal could also fail due to the lack of structures. The federal government did not want to comment directly on their statements, but a spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Defense questioned whether a general inspection could be implemented quickly: “It cannot be carried out ad hoc.”

In the past, the district military replacement offices in Germany were responsible for the drafts – these were abolished when compulsory military service was suspended.

Conscription has been a topic again since the Russian attack

Compulsory military service was suspended in 2011 after 55 years under the then Minister of Defense Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg (CSU), which in practice was tantamount to abolishing military and civilian service. Since the start of the Russian attack on Ukraine, the issue has come into focus again.

For example, at the beginning of the year, Högl called for a debate to start now – “also on the question of how much coercion and how much voluntariness is necessary”. “We definitely need more personnel in the Bundeswehr,” she told the “Augsburger Allgemeine” at the time.

Pistorius: Good arguments for compulsory service

Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (both SPD) spoke out clearly against a return to conscription. In February, however, Pistorius made it clear that he sees good arguments for general compulsory service to strengthen civil protection, the German armed forces and rescue services. Young people need to be heard on the issue, he said.

The FDP reported legal and political concerns about such an obligation to serve. At a party conference in September, the CDU spoke out in favor of the nationwide introduction of a mandatory company year. Where the young people can complete the service should be designed as flexibly as possible. Around a year ago, Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier initiated a debate on the introduction of mandatory social time.

slump in the number of applicants

Defense Minister Pistorius recently questioned whether the goal of increasing the number of soldiers in the Bundeswehr to 203,000 by 2031 can be met. “I dare not predict whether we can reach the number,” he said on Thursday during a visit to the Federal Office for Personnel Management of the Bundeswehr in Cologne.

Since the corona pandemic, there has been a slump in the number of applicants. We are working to leave this valley. He cited the lack of skilled workers and demographic change as reasons. There are currently around 183,000 soldiers in the Bundeswehr.

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