It is one of Germanyâs most controversial topics. Conscription, including compulsory service to support the military, is being debated again after a politician suggested holding a referendum on the issue.
Nearly one in three of Germans who volunteer to join the armed forces leave before the end of their six-month trial period, figures released this week show.
A high profile ceremony for new voluntary recruits to the <i>Bundeswehr</i>, marking the botched attempt to assassinate Hitler in 1944, was marred on Saturday as a row blew up over the decision to change the location.
German military officials are considering pursuing high school dropouts to fill the Bundeswehr's ranks following the end to conscription, a media report said Tuesday. But a plan to recruit foreigners is encountering resistance.
Germanyâs final batch of military conscripts, some 12,000 young men, reported for duty on Monday, as the country moves toward a smaller, professional armed forces.
Germany's defence minister said late on Monday that the government aimed to suspend military conscription from July 1 next year, calling it "responsible and right."
Germanyâs planned end to military conscription and its alternative <i>Zivildienst</i> public service could burden universities with up to 50,000 additional students next year, experts warned on Tuesday.
The road is clear for conscription to be suspended after Angela Merkelâs conservatives agreed to the measure in an effort to modernize the Bundeswehr as a smaller, more professional force, officials announced Monday.
Germany's parliamentary watchdog for the armed forces on Wednesday criticised Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenbergâs plans to streamline the military, saying that âclear cuttingâ Bundeswehr facilities would alienate soldiers from the rest of German society.
Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg said on Monday he planned to cut Germany's armed forces by one-third while scrapping compulsory military service.
Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg intends to get his planned reform of the armed services passed before the end of the year he said on Sunday â including the controversial axing of compulsory military service.
German Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenbergâs new model for the Bundeswehr includes ending conscription and reducing troops from 250,000 to 165,000 volunteers, a media report said on Friday.
Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg's proposal to end conscription in Germany has the support of the majority of Germans, according to a new survey published Sunday.
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle is pushing for a quick end to military service, which he said Wednesday could be scrapped before the next federal election in 2013.
A looming fight within the governing coalition over whether to scrap military service seems to have already been decided, with the Defence Ministry already planning to make do without any new troops from next year.
Former Defence Minister Franz Josef Jung has reportedly blasted his successorâs possible plan to cut the military budget by ending Germanyâs conscription programme.
