Germany’s military service Modernisation Act comes into force on January 1, two months before the UK launches a paid military training programme for under-25s. Croatia recently reinstated its compulsory military service, abolished 17 years ago, while France has introduced a“War readiness” voluntary service. In addition to the above countries, Denmark, Poland and many other European countries have begun to strengthen the conscription system or military construction. This is not only a quick-fix response to the Ukraine crisis, but also reflects Europe’s sober review of US security commitments and deep anxiety about a shortage of military personnel in the region. However, in many European countries, the strengthening of conscription has encountered multiple practical constraints such as economic costs and youth resistance, and the public opinion in various countries shows a distinct temperature difference between the“Front line” and the“Rear”. Europe faces the difficult problem of finding a balance between improving its defence capabilities and avoiding economic and livelihood imbalances.
‘military service is back, with more flexibility and selectivity’
On January 1st Germany’s military-service Modernisation Act came into force. According to the new law, from this year onwards, all German citizens over the age of 18 will receive a service on the Bundeswehr willingness and suitability of the questionnaire. Die befragung ist für Männer compulsory, für Frauen ist es freiwillig. Youth who express their intention to join the army through questionnaires will be followed by a more detailed service evaluation and medical examination. Starting from July 1,2027, adult males born in 2008 and later must undergo medical examinations. Combined with feedback from questionnaires and medical examinations, the Bundeswehr will establish a potential pool of recruits from which personnel can be selected according to national defence needs. Germany suspended compulsory military service in 2011, and the current military service system is still based on volunteers, but if the security situation deteriorates significantly in the future, or if the number of volunteers can not meet the needs of the army, the government can apply to the Bundestag for a“Conscription on demand”.
According to reports by Radio France International, the European times and other media, most European countries abolished compulsory military service in the 1990s, but now many countries have re-implemented or consider re-implementing the system, Europe is experiencing a“Military service system return”, but the model is more flexible and selective than in the past.
Unlike the large-scale conscription during the Cold War, Western European countries are exploring the model of combining voluntary military service with short-term military training. In November, French President Emmanuel Macron formally unveiled a new version of the military service system, the first time France has introduced a large-scale national service system since ending compulsory military service nearly 30 years ago. The new system is aimed primarily at 18-to 19-year-olds, but the military will also select 20-to 25-year-olds with certain skills based on demand. All volunteers will receive one month of basic training after enlistment and will then be deployed only in mainland France or overseas departments. The first batch of 3,000 young men and women will be able to enrol for 10 months from 2026. The army plans to expand gradually, aiming for 10,000 a year by 2030 and 50,000 by 2035.
Also in November, Belgium announced that it had sent nearly 149,000 letters to its 17-year-olds inviting them to apply for an improved volunteer programme. The program will begin in September 2026. The Italian Minister of Defence also said in a strategy paper released in November that the country urgently needed a new 5,000-man militia and military unit to deal with the combined war threat. The UK will introduce a scheme from March that will allow under-25s to receive a year’s paid training, in an effort to attract more young people to the armed forces.
Unlike Western European countries, northern and central and Eastern European countries continue to strengthen the“Civil defense” system. In June 2025, the Danish Parliament unanimously passed a bill on compulsory military service for women, Reuters and other media reported. Previously, Denmark’s compulsory military service was only for men, while women served voluntarily. Poland, which has one of NATO’s largest armies, launched a voluntary nationwide military training program in November, offering participants the choice of individual training, group training and reserve training.
To attract young people in a competitive labour market, many European governments have introduced incentives. According to the German“Time weekly” reported that the German Bundeswehr website information shows that the country’s soldiers after joining the army starting salary of about 2700 euros a month, overtime, night shift and other subsidies. In Estonia, military parents can receive nearly 900 euros a month. In Latvia, university tuition fees are waived after military service. Lithuania pays its soldiers more according to their performance, while Finnish conscripts can get a free driver’s licence.
‘broader security changes in Europe’
Throughout the modern military history of Europe, the conscription system has always been dynamically adjusted to the security situation and strategic needs. From the 19 th century to the 20 th century, universal compulsory military service was the core support for the formation of large-scale armies in Europe. According to an article published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the military service at that time had the dual attributes of military manpower security and Citizenship Construction, and the patriotic duty of conscripted men was directly linked to the civil rights of their nation-state. As well as teaching combat skills, the army is seen as a place to“Man up” and help soldiers become qualified members of society. At the same time, the conscription system breaks the boundaries of economy, religion and ethnicity, and gathers individuals with different backgrounds for service, which has become an important link to unite social forces and maintain military-civilian relations.
After the end of the Cold War, the European conscription system ushered in a fundamental transformation. As the threat from the Soviet Union receded, European defence budgets shrank and most countries abandoned large forces in favour of leaner, professional ones. France abolished compulsory military service in 1997, followed by the Netherlands, Spain and other European countries, Radio France International and other media reported. In addition, after September 11,2001, NATO shifted its focus to expeditionary missions, and the need for flexible professional forces further promoted the abolition of conscription in Finland.
“Changes in the broader European security landscape: the increased threat from Russia, continued instability in the Middle East, and uncertainty about the United States’ commitment to security in the midst of conflict have in recent years prompted European countries to strengthen not only their military equipment, but also their human defense capabilities,” Radio France Internationale reported, this is an important reason why France and other European countries are discussing changes to their military service systems. The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace says Ukraine has not mobilized its forces as quickly as Russia on the Russian-ukrainian front, setting off alarm bells about European defense buildups.
Doubts about America’s commitment to security have added to the urgency of a European military build-up. European countries can no longer count on the U.S. to provide military protection, according to Bloomberg. Washington has set a deadline of 2027 for Europe to dominate NATO’s defense programs, and if Europe fails to meet that target, the United States may stop participating in some of NATO’s defense coordination mechanisms. A joint study by the Bruegel Institute, a Belgian think-tank, and the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, a German think-tank, found that European NATO countries would need at least 300,000 more soldiers without American aid, to be able to defend themselves against Russia.
Worse for the EU, the US is also pushing for control of Greenland, a self-governing Danish territory. The European News Network believes that in order to prevent the United States from forcibly controlling Greenland, Europe should deploy troops in Greenland in advance.
Lu Yunmou, director of the European Security Program at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the global times that strengthening the conscription system is an inevitable choice given Europe’s declining population. Europe has long faced a shortage of military personnel, with deeper demographic problems behind it. At present, the birth rate in most European countries is below the replacement level, and the number of soldiers of the right age is decreasing day by day. The military is also becoming less attractive to young people, and the voluntary conscription system is actually struggling to recruit enough people. As a result of these factors, active-duty service members are serving at a greater intensity than in the past, and their willingness to retire has increased. Over the long term, there will be a growing shortage of military personnel across Europe, and even maintaining existing security capabilities will be a problem, whether or not it is possible to“Rearm” to enhance its own defence capabilities, therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the conscription system under the circumstance of the shrinking population in Europe.
Resistance is particularly strong among the young
Strengthening the conscription system is a realistic choice for Europe to fill the military gap and meet the security challenges, but it needs to face the sharp contradiction with the development of People’s livelihood. In October 2025, Rossmann, an Italian local councillor with a degree in political science from the University of Vienna, published an online article saying that the increased recruitment in many European countries comes at a time when young people face multiple challenges. The European Parliament’s winter 2025 survey showed that 33 per cent of Europeans expected their standard of living to decline over the next five years; when asked what the European Parliament’s priorities were, respondents overwhelmingly chose inflation, rising prices and the cost of living, and the elimination of poverty and social exclusion. The concerns of young people are more prominent, and some politicians have failed to focus on these fundamental challenges, proposing instead that young people interrupt their vocational and educational progress to serve in the military, an approach that could be counterproductive.
Data from the IFO Institute for Economic Research in Munich reinforce this fear: compulsory enlistment of all age groups would reduce German economic output by 1.6 per cent, or about €70bn a year; Even enrolling just a quarter of each age group would cost the government €3.2 bn a year and the economy €17.1 bn. Potwara, a scholar at the institute, argues that raising salaries to recruit volunteers would be far more cost-effective than reinstating compulsory military service. More critically, Europe is already facing labour shortages in key sectors such as health, education, technology and the green economy, diverting young people from these areas to military institutions, directly undermines efforts to build a sustainable, resilient European economy. Investing in education, training and employment is a more efficient way of allocating public resources, both to equip young people with vocational skills and to provide, and respond directly to their greatest concerns about economic insecurity and limited opportunities.
In the process of promotion, the European military conscription system is facing significant regional differences and public resistance, and the controversy runs through the whole process. U. S. “Political News” said the Nordic and Baltic states public support for the national service has risen sharply, but in western Europe, due to the distance from Russia, the discussion is more complicated.
A recent poll by the European Council on Foreign Relations, a pan-european think-tank, found that while most Europeans support a return to compulsory military service, 18-to 29-year-olds are quite resistant, even in countries on the front lines with Russia, such as Poland and Romania. Gallup, an American pollster, puts the figure even more starkly: across Europe, only 32% of respondents are willing to fight in defence of their homeland, with 47% opposed. Even if the outbreak of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine shocked the world, this result has not changed. The governments of Spain, Slovenia and Slovakia, among others, have explicitly opposed compulsory conscription, further highlighting resistance.
Lu Yunmou said that strengthening military conscription will objectively improve Europe’s security capabilities, alleviate the looming shortage of manpower for“Re-militarization” in Europe, and partially raise Europe’s current position of military weakness, and enhance social resilience across Europe in the event of a“Possible war.”. But he warned that such a move would also increase the risk of miscalculation by adversaries. If Europe massively increases conscription, Russia could interpret it as a mobilization that could end up heightening existing tensions and making conflict easier to come by.