France will introduce conscription in an attempt to expand its army becoming the latest EU country to hint at war preparations.
French president Emmanuel Macron is set to announce today military service will be restored with the hopes 3,000 will join in the first year – but this time on a voluntary basis.
Volunteers would see ‘serious’ combat training to ‘reaffirm the importance of preparing the nation and its morale to face growing threats’, the Élysée Palace said.
It comes as the threat of Russia continues to grow, with France’s top general only making headlines last week as he said the country ‘must be prepared to lose its children’.
But the new voluntary service could see up to 50,000 per year as it evolves, as military officials confirm they are ‘preparing for a confrontation with our countries by 2030’.
The US has made clear they expect the Europe to take care of their own defence and now rely on them to counter Russia’s threats.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies thinktank said: ‘Most European armies struggle to meet their recruitment targets and retain trained personnel, as well as to generate a sufficient reserve.’
Nordic and Baltic states a; already have some form of conscription, with Finland having one of the world’s largest reserves based on universal male conscription.
Sweden has also reintroduced selective conscription, with mandatory registration for both men and women.
Meanwhile, in the UK General Sir Richard Barrons said the UK has not invested in ‘the things it needs for a long war,’ instead leaving them to ‘wither’.
He graded civil defence ‘one out of 10’ and warned UK institutions are still operating on the complacent peacetime assumption that protracted wars do not happen anymore.
He told the Long War Conference 2025, held in Whitehall by Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), that the country needs to be ready for a long war – but that with the speed of production, ‘at best, we will be quite ready in about 10 years’.
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