Germany is planning to bring in compulsory military service screening in a bid to stave off the threat of Russia.
Under new proposals set to be presented to the country's Cabinet next month, all young German men will be required to answer a questionnaire about their willingness to serve in the military.
The questionnaire will not be compulsory for young women.
From 2028, all 18-year-old men will be required to undergo a screening in order to determine their fitness for military service, irrespective of their interest in joining the armed forces.
The aim is to boost the country’s defence by attracting volunteers to the military, although the legislation also includes provisions for compulsory service if numbers fall short.
This compulsory service would be reintroduced if deemed necessary due to the security situation, and only if Parliament gives explicit approval.
In 2011, conscription was officially suspended in Germany under then-Chancellor Angela Merkel.
However, her successor-but-one Friedrich Merz has made boosting his country’s military a key goal.
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|German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has made boosting his country’s military a key point amid growing threats from Russia
The conservative leader has also introduced plans to effectively exempt defence spending from Germany’s strict debt rules in order to build “the strongest conventional army in Europe”.
At the moment, however, the Bundeswehr is struggling to gain numbers.
It currently includes 180,000 active soldiers, with 49,000 reservists.
The Defence Ministry this year expects to recruit 15,000 new personnel for military service - 5,000 more than last year.
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The final goal is to have a total military strength of 460,000 combining 260,000 active soldiers and 200,000 reservists - while the Government hopes to be adding 40,000 new recruits every year by 2031.
Another aim is to make military service more appealing by offering training in new technologies and languages.
Germany is not the only European country which has been mulling over conscription.
Sweden reintroduced mandatory service in 2017, just seven years after abandoning it.
In March this year, Latvian President Edgars Rinkeviks urged other European countries to follow his country’s lead and “absolutely” introduce conscription, calling his own country “quite weak” militarily.
But back in Britain, ministers have confirmed they are not considering introducing compulsory service.