Germany’s Bundestag has approved a far-reaching reform of military service designed to expand the Bundeswehr over the next decade, while leaving open the option of a return to conscription if voluntary recruitment fails to meet targets.

The decision has triggered large youth protests across the country and intensified debate over Germany’s wider security posture.

Under the law, passed in Berlin after months of negotiation, the armed forces are to grow from today’s 183,000 active personnel to 260,000 by 2035, with the reserve expanded to at least 200,000. In total, Germany is aiming for a force of around 460,000 servicemen and women, in line with its NATO planning goals and in response to assessments of the threat from Russia.

The core of the reform is a new, better-paid voluntary service. From 2026, young people born in 2008 will receive questionnaires asking about their willingness and fitness to serve; in practice, only men are legally obliged to respond, though both men and women will be approached. Those who volunteer will be offered a minimum six-month term, with the possibility of extending their contracts and receiving higher pay, social security contributions and practical benefits such as subsidised driving licences.

Alongside this, the law introduces what the government calls “needs-based” military service. If the Bundeswehr’s annual intake of volunteers remains below the level required to meet the 2035 targets, or if the security situation deteriorates, the Bundestag retains the power to activate a form of conscription. Any move to compulsory service would require a separate parliamentary vote and would be based on random selection among medically fit candidates, most likely through a lottery or similar mechanism.

Another significant change is the reintroduction of mandatory medical assessment. From mid-2027, men born in or after 2008 will be subject to compulsory medical checks to determine their suitability for military service, reversing a key element of the 2011 decision that effectively suspended conscription. Women will be able to volunteer for these checks, but are not covered by the same legal obligation.

The government argues that the new framework modernises the old draft system while preserving the flexibility to scale up manpower if needed. Ministers present the measure as part of a broader effort to make the Bundeswehr more attractive as an employer and to ensure Germany can meet its alliance commitments in a deteriorating security environment.

However, the legislation has prompted visible resistance, particularly among school-age Germans. Under the banner “Schulstreik gegen die Wehrpflicht” (“school strike against conscription”), pupils staged coordinated walkouts in what organisers said were around 90 cities and towns, including Berlin, Hamburg and Dresden. In the capital, several thousand protesters – many of them aged between 16 and 20 – marched through the Kreuzberg district, carrying banners against conscription and displaying left-wing and anti-militarist symbols.

Interviews conducted on the marches suggested that many young people reject both voluntary and compulsory service. One 17-year-old student, Martin, summed up his position by saying he did not wish to spend time on training that, in his view, would “only teach him how to kill people”, asking why he should be required to do “what old men tell me”. Protesters generally called for the law’s repeal and for investment in civilian programmes instead of military expansion.

The controversy around the reform unfolds against the background of polling that points to limited willingness in parts of Europe to take up arms in the event of war. A recent cross-country survey cited in the German debate suggested that only 22 per cent of Poles would be ready to defend their country with a weapon, rising to 27 per cent if conscription were introduced. Reported figures for Latvia were 28 per cent, for the United Kingdom and Estonia 35 per cent, and for Germany 38 per cent. Lithuania recorded the highest share among the countries mentioned, at 52 per cent.

These numbers are being interpreted in different ways. Supporters of the German law argue that they highlight a gap between rising concern about security and the personal readiness of citizens to serve, making structured recruitment and training essential. Critics counter that the figures show the limits of public support for militarisation and question whether attempts to expand the armed forces through legal obligation rather than social consensus will prove sustainable.

Germany’s move fits into a broader European trend of revisiting military service models and stepping up defence spending in response to Russia’s war against Ukraine and uncertainty over long-term US security guarantees. Recent polling across several EU member states has indicated growing backing for higher defence budgets and, in some cases, for some form of national service, even as younger age groups remain sceptical of a return to the draft.