Ex-German army chief says new voluntary military service insufficient

Germany’s new voluntary military service model is likely to be insufficient to fill gaps in recruitment, the former leader of the country’s army said on Thursday.

Alfons Mais, who stepped down as inspector of the German army on Wednesday, told dpa that the current plans – which passed in the Cabinet in August – are “not a game changer” and that the “scales are tipping increasingly in favour of compulsory service.”

“Trusting God for enough volunteers will soon no longer be enough,” said Mais, a long-serving member of the German military, the Bundeswehr.

The lieutenant general, who is retiring at the end of the year, believes political leaders must focus on growing the size of the active-duty force, instead of reserves.

“We have promised NATO not only a functioning logistical hub in Germany, but also new artillery and engineer battalions, and if the field army doesn’t hold up at the front, the hub at the back will serve for nothing,” he said.

At the end of 2024, there were around 181,150 active soldiers in the Bundeswehr.

Based on new NATO targets, the force is due to grow to around 260,000 active-duty personnel as well as 200,000 reservists, whose numbers are to be increased primarily through the new military service.

The voluntary military service plan, backed by Defence Minister Boris Pistorius, is due to be debated in the German parliament next week.