Overview
- After a final debate, MPs held a roll-call vote at the AfD’s request, with the official result due later in the morning.
- The draft requires all 18-year-old men to complete an interest questionnaire and undergo compulsory medical screening, while armed service remains voluntary for now.
- Defense Minister Boris Pistorius urged support, arguing that core freedoms and the state do not protect themselves.
- The bill provides for a conditional partial conscription that would need a separate Bundestag decision if threats intensify or recruitment targets are missed.
- CDU/CSU endorsed the personnel buildup as necessary against Russia, while Greens, Left and AfD criticized different aspects, and student groups called school strikes as the government targets roughly 260,000 active troops and 200,000 reservists toward NATO’s 460,000 goal by 2035.