Overview

• Ministers meeting at the Defense Ministry cleared the bill for Bundestag debate and possible amendment, keeping conscription dormant for now.
• The plan sends questionnaires to all young people starting next year, obliges men to respond, introduces compulsory medical screening for men from 2027, and begins with about 15,000 entrants.
• Wehrdienst recruits would be paid as time‑soldiers, with reports indicating more than €2,000 net per month and in some accounts roughly €2,300.
• The government targets a larger active force toward roughly 260,000 soldiers; the Union bloc demands binding annual targets and an automatic trigger for conscription, while military associations warn the proposal still falls short.
• In parallel U.S. developments, media report armed National Guard patrols in Washington and a White House order for specialized and rapid‑reaction Guard units nationwide, drawing legal scrutiny and protests.