(ANSA-AFP) - BERLIN, MAR 4 - Germany's conservatives, who are
set to lead the next government, on Tuesday argued that the
country should quickly reintroduce compulsory military service.
Friedrich Merz, head of the CDU/CSU bloc that topped last
month's elections, has argued that in the era of US President
Donald Trump, Europe will have to better handle its own
security. The defence policy spokesman of his centre-right
alliance, Florian Hahn, told Bild daily that Germany's
"suspension of conscription no longer fits the current threat
situation". "The first conscripts will have to walk through the
barracks gates in 2025," Hahn told the daily. "We cannot stand
by and watch as the world around us becomes more unsafe." Fears
about the future strength of NATO have surged in Europe, not
least after Trump recently sided repeatedly with long-isolated
Russia against Ukraine, upending the Western consensus of recent
years. Merz has vowed to break with many policies of former CDU
chancellor Angela Merkel, including on migration, but also on
her 2011 decision to suspend compulsory military service. This
week, Merz reiterated that he would favour the reintroduction of
a compulsory year in which young people could perform either
military or community service. "We need a much higher personnel
strength in the armed forces," he said. "I am not committing
myself to any numbers now, but we cannot manage with the current
number and we also need a much stronger reserve." (ANSA-AFP).
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