Overview

• CDU/CSU leaders have reportedly pulled next week’s first reading from the agenda to press for binding troop targets and automatic triggers for a draft if goals are missed.
• Union figures cite rising drone incidents and Russian rearmament as reasons to tighten the bill, pointing to NATO planning that calls for about 260,000 active soldiers and 200,000 reservists versus roughly 181,000 currently.
• The government’s August draft would mandate registration and medical screening for young men, start with voluntary service, and allow conscription only if the Bundestag later approves it under specified conditions.
• Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul and faction chief Jens Spahn publicly back an immediate return to conscription, while SPD lawmakers express irritation at the blockade but say a quick agreement is still possible.
• Green politician Cem Özdemir proposes a universal ‘republican year’ of service in the military or social sectors and warns against imposing a draft over the heads of young people.