Compulsory military service for women - Inspector General Breuer calls for amendment of the Basic Law
The Inspector-General of the Federal Armed Forces, Carsten Breuer, would include women in the draft if the military service was reactivated. "We currently have a suspended military service that targets the male population only according to the Basic Law. Equal treatment should be established here – but we need a corresponding political and societal discussion for that," Breuer told the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND). Germany needs to be militarily capable.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) presented plans for a new military service model in June. The new model should consist of a compulsory military service of six months with an option for additional voluntary military service up to an additional 17 months. A mandatory registration should be introduced, in which young men would have to declare their readiness and ability for military service. Young women could also do this.
The Bundeswehr is suffering from a personnel shortage
Breuer spoke in favor of Pistorius' model. "Militarily speaking, we need a growth capacity, not least with regard to NATO planning. Germany is the pivot of the Alliance. In total, our requirement is for over 400,000 time-serving and career soldiers and reservists. To meet this requirement, we need approximately 100,000 reservists in addition," said the Inspector-General. The new model could initially cover this need. However, "without compulsory elements, it won't work."
The military service was suspended in Germany in 2011 by Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg (CSU) after 55 years. This was equivalent to the abolition of military and civil service.
Carsten Breuer, the Inspector-General of the Federal Armed Forces, advocates for including women in the reactivated compulsory military service, as he believes in equal treatment, needing a political and societal discussion first. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) proposes a new military service model with a six-month compulsory service for men and women, who can also opt for additional voluntary service. Germany's military, the Bundeswehr, is grappling with a personnel shortage, and Breuer supports Pistorius' plan, as it could initially address the need for over 400,000 soldiers and reservists, but only if it includes compulsory elements.
