Germany wants to increase the number of reservists

The German Defense Ministry plans to increase the number of Bundeswehr reservists to 60,000 people, the German newspaper Zeit reports .

Deputy Inspector General of the Bundeswehr, Lieutenant General Alexander Hoppe, said that reservists, "as in the Cold War," should be trained and equipped in such a way that they can reinforce or replace active troops. Reservists should include both men and women, he said.

"I am convinced that we must adapt the reserve to the current security policy challenges so that it can adequately support the Bundeswehr in fulfilling its national and alliance defence tasks," Hoppe said.

In addition, as Zeit writes, the German Ministry of Defense is studying how large the number of people who can be called up and are fit for service in the event of defense is. "There are different figures. We assume that there are about 800 thousand who can be called up under military law. In principle, this includes all those who once served in the Bundeswehr, retired and are within the age limit, including conscripts of recent years," Hoppe explained.

The official also noted that the number of citizens subject to conscription has been decreasing recently. This is due, among other things, to the fact that Germany suspended regular conscription in 2011. Since then, the number of the Bundeswehr has been decreasing. In 2024, the German armed forces will have 181 thousand people. At the same time, as Zeit specifies, NATO plans imply increasing the number of the Bundeswehr to 272 thousand people.

As RBC reports , citing polls by the YouGov public opinion research institute and the Forsa Institute, more than half of German residents support the return of compulsory conscription into the army.

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