Berlin, Germany – Thousands of students across Germany participated in demonstrations Friday against a newly approved military recruitment law. The legislation, passed by the Bundestag, aims to bolster the country’s armed forces.
Protests took place in approximately 90 cities, fueled by the ‘School Strike Against Conscription’ initiative, a coalition of youth and student organizations. In Berlin, over 3,000 students gathered near Hallesches Tor metro station before marching towards Oranienplatz. A significant number of parents joined the demonstration to support their children.
Demonstrators carried signs with slogans such as, ‘Vocational Training, Not War,’ ‘You Go to the Front Lines,’ and ‘Joining the Army is Not My Priority.’ Similar protests were reported in Potsdam, Cottbus, Hamburg, Cologne, Essen, Dusseldorf, Hanover, Stuttgart, Ulm, Tübingen, and Heidelberg, among other cities.
The controversial law stems from initial proposals by Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU) to reinstate a form of mandatory conscription, potentially through a lottery system. However, this faced opposition from their coalition partner, the Social Democratic Party (SPD).
The final agreement resulted in a non-compulsory recruitment model. Under the new legislation, all men turning 18 can apply for military service for a minimum of six months. Women are also eligible to volunteer. The Bundestag’s move paves the way for a possible return to mandatory conscription, nearly 15 years after its abolition. The initial phase focuses on voluntary service, potentially transitioning to mandatory service if the Ministry of Defense fails to recruit sufficient volunteers.
The government aims to increase the size of its military from the current 183,000 active personnel to 270,000, with an additional 200,000 reservists by 2035.
The Ministry of Defense has indicated that these provisions will take effect in mid-2027, pending approval from the Bundesrat, the upper house representing the German states.
