Overview
- Former SPD leader Sigmar Gabriel told the Tagesspiegel that Germany should reinstate conscription to rebuild a territorial army with sufficient reservists.
- Ex-armed forces commissioner Hans-Peter Bartels warned NATO strength goals cannot be met without a real draft, citing targets of 260,000 active troops and 460,000 with reservists versus about 180,000 today.
- Defence Minister Boris Pistorius has drafted a service law centered on voluntary enlistment and financial incentives that is slated for cabinet consideration at the end of the month, aiming to take effect around January 2026.
- Conscription was suspended in 2011 but remains in the Basic Law and could be reinstated by a simple majority in the Bundestag.
- SPD parliamentary leader Matthias Miersch has indicated there would be no return to compulsory service before the next federal election unless volunteer recruitment proves insufficient.