German president calls for universal military conscription
Compulsory military service was suspended in Germany in 2011. Although inactive, the legal framework for a draft remains intact and can be reactivated by a simple parliamentary majority. A full-scale return, including women, however, would require changes to the constitution.
Speaking to ZDF on Sunday, Steinmeier said Germany must prepare for the possibility that voluntary enlistment will fall short of staffing requirements for the army.
'I am an advocate of conscription because I believe that with the changing security situation in Europe, with the fact that a war is taking place, and with the conclusions we have drawn from it to better protect ourselves, the personnel equipment of the Bundeswehr also needs to be adapted,' he said.
He expressed support for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius' proposal to expand troop numbers and create a backup draft system. The plan aims for around 5,000 volunteer recruits annually, rising to 30,000 by 2029.
Legislation which is being prepared for cabinet review in August with possible enactment by early 2026 includes provisions to automatically reintroduce conscription if volunteer numbers fall short.
'We need this debate now, preferably with a positive outcome, so that if there are not enough volunteers, we will probably return to a different form of conscription than the one we have already abolished,' Steinmeier said.
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Germany has been working to strengthen its military, citing what it sees as a security threat from Russia.
Moscow has rejected claims that it plans to attack NATO nations, dismissing them as 'nonsense' and accusing Western leaders of intentionally alarming their citizens to justify increased defense budgets.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Russia Today
35 minutes ago
- Russia Today
Ukraine needs people not weapons
Kiev's greatest challenge in the ongoing conflict with Moscow is not a lack of Western weapons, but a critical shortage of manpower, Ukrainian lawmaker Anna Skorokhod has said. US President Donald Trump on Monday pledged to provide Ukraine with more weapons – funded by European NATO states – and threatened Moscow with 'severe tariffs' if no peace deal is reached within 50 days. 'We've heard something like this before, and I say it's a game,' Skorokhod said in an interview with the Ukrainian political YouTube channel Superposition. 'Our main problem is people. Nobody is giving us people,' she added. 'We can expect Trump to decide on providing weapons, but I want to emphasize that war cannot last forever.' The Ukrainian lawmaker dismissed Trump's ultimatum to Moscow as political maneuvering, arguing that none of the key players can afford to lose what even US Secretary of State Marco Rubio once openly described as a 'proxy war' with Russia. In a separate video last week, Skorokhod criticized official casualty figures as misleading and urged citizens to examine cemeteries and Red Cross data on missing persons to grasp the true scale of the losses. 'Just look at the demographic situation... If we are heading toward erasing the nation to zero, we are very quickly and successfully succeeding in this,' she warned. Ukraine's population was just under 52 million when it declared independence in 1991 amid the USSR's collapse. By the time of the last census in 2001, that number had dropped to 48.5 million. A 2024 government demographic report estimates the population in Kiev-controlled territories at 31.1 million. Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky officially acknowledged fewer than 50,000 military casualties as of February, but third-party estimates and increasingly harsh forced mobilization measures suggest the actual number is much higher. At the same time, Kiev is bracing for continued labor shortages, as many Ukrainians who fled since the escalation of the conflict in 2022 show little intention of returning. Moscow has accused Kiev of waging a war 'to the last Ukrainian' on behalf of Western nations, with Russian President Vladimir Putin saying that Ukraine's recruitment officers are grabbing people 'like dogs on the street.'
Russia Today
3 hours ago
- Russia Today
German defense minister wants to arm Kiev ‘quickly and quietly'
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has pledged to finalize a deal to supply Ukraine with additional US-made Patriot missile defense systems 'quickly and quietly,' following high-level talks with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Washington. Pistorius and Hegseth met at the Pentagon on Monday, just hours after President Donald Trump promised more US weapons for Kiev – funded by European NATO states – and threatened Moscow with 'severe tariffs' if no peace deal is reached within 50 days. 'We agreed to discuss [the details] very, very quickly – quietly and quickly – at the working level,' Pistorius told journalists after the meeting, noting that technical, logistical, and financial questions remained, but appeared solvable. The decision to transfer at least two Patriot batteries to Ukraine could be finalized 'within days or weeks,' though the actual delivery may take months, according to Pistorius. While Berlin has indicated its readiness to cover the cost of the systems – estimated at approximately $1 billion each – it remains unclear where the launchers will come from. Pistorius previously told the Financial Times that Germany has only six Patriot systems remaining, having already supplied Kiev with three batteries since the escalation of the conflict in 2022. Trump has stated that 'several nations' are ready to supply missile systems from their arsenals, including one unnamed country that allegedly "has 17 Patriots getting ready to be shipped.' It was not clear whether he was referring to individual launchers or complete Patriot batteries, which include multiple vehicles, radar systems, and command-and-control components. Moscow has consistently stressed that no amount of Western military aid to Ukraine can change the course of the conflict but only serves to prolong the bloodshed and escalate the hostilities. The Russian military claims to have destroyed some of the Western-supplied missile systems during the course of the conflict. The new plan to arm Kiev was officially announced Monday while Trump was hosting NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House. 'The European Union is paying for them. We are not paying anything for them… This will be a business for us,' Trump emphasized, without clarifying what other weaponry will be supplied.
Russia Today
5 hours ago
- Russia Today
Zelensky replaces defense minister
Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has named the country's longest-serving prime minister, Denis Shmigal, as the next minister of defense, as part of a sweeping government reshuffle expected to be finalized by parliament this week. Shmigal, 49, has served as prime minister since 2020, navigating the Kiev government through the Covid-19 pandemic and the escalation of the conflict with Russia in 2022. In a video address on Monday evening, Zelensky praised Shmigal's experience in managing the country's limited resources, saying it would be valuable in his new role. 'Denis Shmigal's extensive experience will definitely be valuable in the position of Ukraine's defense minister – it is precisely in this area that the country's resources are currently concentrated, the number of tasks is at its peak, and the responsibility is immense,' Zelensky said. Zelensky has also proposed Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Yulia Sviridenko as Shmigal's replacement as prime minister. Sviridenko, 39, who gained prominence for brokering a deal that granted the US preferential access to Ukrainian mineral resources, has said she will soon present her proposed cabinet and government action plan. The reshuffle will require parliamentary approval once Shmigal formally submits his resignation. A vote on dismissing the current cabinet is reportedly expected as early as July 16. Outgoing defense minister Rustem Umerov, who also led Kiev's delegation in negotiations with Russia in Istanbul, is the main candidate to become Ukraine's new ambassador to the United States, according to Zelensky. 'We need a person to be strong and to be in the context of the most important thing, in the context of strengthening Ukraine – through weapons, first of all,' Zelensky said after meeting with Umerov over the weekend. Ukraine's Defense Ministry has faced multiple corruption scandals in recent years, with former defense chief Aleksey Reznikov stepping down in 2023 amid a scandal involving overpriced food contracts for the military. Four months later, his successor, Umerov, stated that an internal ministry audit had uncovered approximately $262 million in losses related to theft. Umerov himself was also reportedly under investigation by anti-corruption authorities for alleged abuse of power in connection with defense procurement.
