Latest news with #AndreasHenne
Yahoo
3 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
German general sees limits to voluntary military enlistment
Germany may need to introduce compulsory elements in military service over the long term, according to the commander of the division for homeland security. "For the protection of critical defence infrastructure, I simply need more soldiers than we can currently get," Major General Andreas Henne told the RND media group in remarks published on Tuesday. He added that the plan is to recruit enough volunteers initially so that compulsory service would not be necessary. "But the more soldiers we need, the more likely it is that we will reach the limits of voluntary enlistment," he said, without specifying what form compulsory measures might take. The governing coalition of the conservative CDU/CSU bloc and the Social Democrats (SPD) plans to introduce a new military service model initially based on voluntary enlistment, according to the coalition agreement. This represents a compromise that meets SPD demands, while the CDU/CSU had pushed to end the suspension of compulsory military service. Conscription was suspended in 2011, effectively ending mandatory military and civilian service in practice. Henne expects the first voluntary recruits to be called up later this year.
Al Arabiya
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
German defense minister does not rule out return of military draft
Germany may consider reintroducing military conscription from as soon as next year if it does not attract enough volunteers for its armed forces, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung on Saturday. Part of the NATO alliance, Germany is looking to enhance its military strength following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but looks likely to fail to attract enough recruits. An additional 100,000 soldiers are needed in the coming years to meet NATO obligations, its armed forces have said. Its Conservatives, which lead a coalition in which Pistorius' Social Democrats (SPD) are junior partners, have revved up military spending and signaled openness to a compulsory service in the armed forces, which was abandoned in 2011. 'Our model is initially based on voluntary participation,' Pistorius said in an interview with the Sunday newspaper, which is already for sale on Saturdays. 'If the time comes when we have more capacity available than voluntary registrations, then we may decide to make it mandatory,' he added. A new bill to that extent could come into force as soon as January 1, 2026, he said. The SPD has always focused more on voluntary options to rebuild the military. Andreas Henne, Commander of Germany's Homeland Security Division, on Saturday also supported recruitment drives. 'We've taken the right path, but we now need to increase the pace,' Henne said in an interview with news site t-online. 'In terms of equipment, infrastructure expansion, and, above all, personnel.'
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
German defence minister does not rule out return of military draft, he tells FAS
FRANKFURT (Reuters) -Germany may consider reintroducing military conscription from as soon as next year if it does not attract enough volunteers for its armed forces, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung on Saturday. Part of the NATO alliance, Germany is looking to enhance its military strength following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but looks likely to fail to attract enough recruits. An additional 100,000 soldiers are needed in the coming years to meet NATO obligations, its armed forces have said. Its Conservatives, which lead a coalition in which Pistorius' Social Democrats (SPD) are junior partners, have revved up military spending and signalled openness to a compulsory service in the armed forces, which was abandoned in 2011. "Our model is initially based on voluntary participation," Pistorius said in an interview with the Sunday newspaper, which is already for sale on Saturdays. "If the time comes when we have more capacity available than voluntary registrations, then we may decide to make it mandatory," he added. A new bill to that extent could come into force as soon as January 1, 2026, he said. The SPD has always focused more on voluntary options to rebuild the military. Andreas Henne, Commander of Germany's Homeland Security Division, on Saturday also supported recruitment drives. "We've taken the right path, but we now need to increase the pace," Henne said in an interview with news site t-online. "In terms of equipment, infrastructure expansion, and, above all, personnel."
Reuters
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
German defence minister does not rule out return of military draft, he tells FAS
FRANKFURT, May 24 (Reuters) - Germany may consider reintroducing military conscription from as soon as next year if it does not attract enough volunteers for its armed forces, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung on Saturday. Part of the NATO alliance, Germany is looking to enhance its military strength following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but looks likely to fail to attract enough recruits. An additional 100,000 soldiers are needed in the coming years to meet NATO obligations, its armed forces have said. Its Conservatives, which lead a coalition in which Pistorius' Social Democrats (SPD) are junior partners, have revved up military spending and signalled openness to a compulsory service in the armed forces, which was abandoned in 2011. "Our model is initially based on voluntary participation," Pistorius said in an interview with the Sunday newspaper, which is already for sale on Saturdays. "If the time comes when we have more capacity available than voluntary registrations, then we may decide to make it mandatory," he added. A new bill to that extent could come into force as soon as January 1, 2026, he said. The SPD has always focused more on voluntary options to rebuild the military. Andreas Henne, Commander of Germany's Homeland Security Division, on Saturday also supported recruitment drives. "We've taken the right path, but we now need to increase the pace," Henne said in an interview with news site t-online. "In terms of equipment, infrastructure expansion, and, above all, personnel."
