German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said he was “looking at all options” for bringing back military conscription after saying getting rid of it over a decade ago was "a mistake," The Telegraph reported.
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Germany has made defense spending a priority, which had been neglected for the most part since the conclusion of the Cold War.
The increase in spending includes boosting the number of troops from the current 180,000 to more than 200,000 by 2031, but the country faces difficulties in attracting enough recruits to reach that goal.
"I'm looking at alternative models, such as the Swedish model, where all young men and women are conscripted and only a select few end up doing their basic military service," Pistorius told Die Welt newspaper. "Whether something like that would also be conceivable here is part of our deliberations."
In 2011, arguing that conscription had become too expensive, the German government stopped the practice.
Pistorius said that decision had been "a mistake in hindsight," but added that it would be very difficult to bring it back in its old form, when it applied to all male school leavers, because too few German lawmakers agree with the idea.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stated in February that he opposed reintroducing conscription, describing it as "a bad idea."
The opposition Christian Democrats have proposed a compulsory year of service that could also include social work.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
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