War: Young Europeans are not enthusiastic about the military

Germany from 182,000 to 203,000 by 2030, France and wants to increase the number of its troops from 240,000 to 275,000, Poland by the end of this year, it plans to increase the number of soldiers from 197,000 to 220,000 and finally to 300,000.

Today’s career-oriented, individualistic young people are reluctant to join the army, and Europe is not the only country struggling with recruitment

– can be read in the Economist’s analysis.

The question of how to recruit more people for the military has now become vital in the countries located in and around the world’s hotbeds of conflict.

Order of duty

Conscription usually means that civilians are forced to enlist in the armed forces, while military service is often a subset of that, the newspaper reports.

At the beginning of the 20th century, about 80% of countries had conscription in some form; in the mid-2010s, this proportion was barely 40%. The practice reached its peak during the World Wars and was used by many countries during the Cold War. After that, the Western world turned to high-tech counterinsurgency campaigns, such as those in Afghanistan and Iraq.

The massive conscripted armies were mostly replaced by smaller, professional volunteer forces. Since 1995, 13 members of the OECD, mostly rich countries, have abolished conscription. All but eight of NATO’s 32 members were abolished.The most urgent debates about compulsory military service and conscription take place in countries where there is a serious threat of war or where there is already a war.

in Ukraine more than two years after the Russian invasion, thousands of men are fleeing across the country or hiding to avoid serving conscription papers. On April 2, due to the lack of soldiers, the Ukrainian government was forced to lower the minimum age of conscription from 27 to 25. And Russia sent hundreds of thousands of forcibly mobilized men into the war.Israelmilitary duties are one of the central pillars of citizenship.

After the October 7 attacks, some 300,000 Israelis abandoned civilian life and rushed to their units. Israel wants to extend the service of male conscripts to three years (young women currently serve 24 months and young men 32 months) and raise the call-up age for reservists to 45. At the same time, the exemption of ultra-Orthodox Jews from service is the subject of a bitter political struggle.

Meanwhile in Asia Taiwan is trying to prepare for a possible war with China as Sino-American tensions persist. Taiwan extended military service from four months to one year in 2022. However, the island still boasts only 169,000 active troops (China has about 2 million).

South Korea, where military service has a brutal reputation, he tries to make it more attractive. Service has been shortened to 18 months, wages are rising and sadistic drill sergeants have been cut back. The government wants to recruit more women (the male-only conscription fueled male resentment and anti-feminist politics).

There is no great will to fight among young people

Armed forces recruiters are struggling in many places with changing values: young people are increasingly reluctant to fight even in defensive wars. The World Values ​​Survey, an academic research project, has been asking people around the world the same question for decades: “Would you be willing to fight for your country?”

In the last round of the survey, between 2017 and 2022, only 36% of Dutch 16-29 year olds answered yes.

in Germany recruiters try to counter with rhetoric of patriotism, self-realization and shared values; the emphatic motto of the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr, is Wir. Dienen. Deutschland. (We serve Germany.) They also run campaigns with influencers on TikTok and Instagram. But it seems that this is not enough to achieve their goals, the paper writes.

But things can change when conflicts approach.

Political affiliation is a poor predictor of gun ownership. Among those who planned to vote for far-left or far-right parties, few were willing to fight for their country. Those who supported centrist parties such as the German Social Democrats and Christian Democrats were much more willing to do so.

In addition to changing values, military recruiters also have to face an economic obstacle: young people are currently being approached by many employers for their services. In most rich countries, Generation Z can choose between jobs.

Unemployment among 15-24-year-olds in the European Union was 14.5% last year, compared to 22.4% in 2015. In Germany, this rate was only 5.8%. In such tight labor markets, militaries find it difficult to compete with the private sector. Besides, sitting at a desk is much more pleasant than crawling in mud.

However, in some rich countries, the willingness of young people to fight is still high. In France, their proportion is 58%, in Singapore, Taiwan and South Korea it is even higher. In Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, four of the richest and most peaceful countries in the world, two-thirds or more of citizens say they are willing to fight. (All are close to Russia.) Their expanding armed forces also have no problem finding soldiers: military service is mandatory for young people in all four countries.

The new NATO members are the Swedes

Sweden It ended the practice in 2011, but brought it back in 2018 after failing to meet recruitment targets. This is an interesting case study for others. It has just joined NATO and is increasing its strength from 69,700 troops to 96,300, requiring about 10,000 new recruits a year.

All 19-year-olds in the country (both men and women) must complete service questionnaires; slightly less than a third meet the requirements and a tenth eventually enlist.

Instead of discouraging young people from joining the armed forces, compulsory service in Sweden seems to make them more enthusiastic. According to surveys conducted at the end of the service period, “around 80% of conscripts would recommend military service to other young people.

Arab states

Also in the Middle East, many states consider the military service of young people as a social glue. The United Arab Emirates introduced it in 2014, in part to forge a common sense of identity among young people. Morocco, Jordan and Kuwait followed suit.