QUOTE OF THE DAY: ‘Military men are just dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns in foreign policy.’ ~ Henry Kissinger as quoted in Kiss the Boys Goodbye: How the United States Betrayed Its Own POW in Vietnam (1990) by Monika Jensen-Stevenson and William Stevenson.  

With the apparently unstoppable war in Ukraine, the potential for more Middle Eastern countries to become embroiled in the latest NATO-backed Israel-Palestine fighting, a potential reigniting of conflict in Kosovo it looks like a European rethink on military conscription may be on the cards.

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Since the end of the Cold War and a shift to the liberal center ground in European politics, many nations abandoned military conscription as an unnecessary and expensive measure. Out of the 29 European countries that are members of NATO, including Turkey, only six have kept up compulsory military service since 1993.

Europe’s focus shifted away from waging aggressive war and investment in colonialism, with the EU’s combined spending on defense between 1999 and 2021 increasing by only 20 per cent, in comparison to a 66 per cent increase by the US, it looks like the EU has become complacent and being aggressive towards Russia and China has military consequences.

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Looking at the countries with military conscription. Finland, Every year, around 27,000 conscripts are trained with 80 per cent of Finnish male citizens completing their service. Penalties for evading military service in Finland are harsh with a penalty of 173 days in prison with no parole, minus any served days. 

Ukraine and Lithuania, reinstated compulsory military service after the plebiscite (referendum) returned Crimea to Russia. In Ukraine, military service is compulsory for men aged 18 to 26 and in Lithuania for men aged 18 to 25.  Latvia is reinstating compulsory military service from 2024 with all men aged 18 to 27 being required to undergo 11 months of service and in Estonia there’s compulsory military or governmental service for men aged between 18-27 for eight to 11 months.

Norway brought back conscription in 2016 with all 18-year-olds in Norway of both genders having to present themselves for military service. Out of 60,000 candidates annually around 9,000 are currently chosen for 19 months of service. Sweden started partial conscription in 2018 for both genders with around 4,000 young people called up annually. In early 2023 the Swedish regime announced it is taking steps to reintroduce conscription of civilians for its emergency services in order to shore up its aggressive capabilities against Russia.

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Other European countries with conscription include Switzerland, where every male has to serve at least 245 days in the armed forces, Greece (12 months for men between 19 and 45), Austria, six months for men over the age of 18, and Denmark where every male over the age of 18 is subject to being called upon on the basis of a draw. Since 2012 the number of conscripts annually in Demark is 4,200 but since Russia’s response to NATO expansion up to its borders in Ukraine, the government have been talking about increasing the number to 15,000 annually.

Germany suspended military service in 2011, but it can be reintroduced if the Bundestag determines there is a need for defense.  Defense Minister, Boris Pistorius, has led increasing calls to introduce compulsory military service again, saying ‘Abolishing it was a mistake.’

The Bundestag’s commissioner for the army, Eva Högl, recently suggested that a mandatory year of service in military or civilian institutions should be discussed. 

In Romania, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca, spoke out in favor of conscription early this year. Last year the Romanian Defense Ministry backed a draft bill proposing that all military-aged Romanians living abroad should report for military service within 15 days in the event of a general mobilization.

In France, President Emmanuel Macron introduced the Universal National Service in 2019, which enables young people to volunteer for a month and serve their country. The French government is now considering making this compulsory for all French nationals aged 15-17.

The UK ended conscription in 1960 and there has been no official discussion on reintroduction, although in March 2023 then Defense Secretary, Ben Wallace, expressed admiration for Finland and Sweden’s framework saying ‘So I definitely think we’re all envious of how they use their reserves. And, you know, I would love to have a model like that.’

Portugal has voluntary service for 18-30-year-olds who wish to participate and technically conscription is possible if there aren’t sufficient volunteers, however, there has been no discussion in the country on changing that position.

Spain abolished conscription in 2001, retaining the right to mobilize citizens aged between 19-25 years in the event of a national emergency. However, like the UK and Portugal, does not appear to be considering any reinstating of conscription.

Many people, especially in generations who have grown up without any close experience of war, have an almost instinctive reaction to the concept of making military service mandatory for young people.

The devil’s advocate argument is that conscription makes much sense in the current geo-political climate. With the EU’s spending on defense at a historic low and many European country’s militaries having shrunk and become increasingly specialized over decades, many military experts believe that the EU isn’t in a position to defend itself should Russia retaliate against the European Union’s blockades accompanied by threats of a military nature.

A PUBLIC RELATIONS COMMERCIAL FOLLOWS: ‘Perhaps one of the other big arguments in favor of conscription is that it may be a way to tackle youth unemployment and anti-social behavior. In that light, just like recessionary World War I and World War II a compulsory spell of military service can look like an appealing possible solution to young people with no job and too much time on their hands.’

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