Compulsory military service: SPD surprisingly drops compromise

This was an irritating moment even for experienced journalists. On Tuesday afternoon they gathered in the Bundestag for a press conference organized by the Union and SPD in the morning. But then happened: nothing. After half an hour the appointment was canceled. Behind this lies the unexpected escalation of an argument.

For weeks, the coalition members have been struggling to find a compromise on the new military service law, which was to be discussed in the Bundestag in its first reading on Thursday. The SPD relies on voluntariness, the Union considers an option to make it compulsory if not enough soldiers can be recruited voluntarily to be essential. The only thing they agree on is that the current number of soldiers (almost 183,000) is not enough if one wants to meet NATO’s requirements and arm Germany for a possible Russian attack on NATO territory.

Now a face-saving solution seemed to have been found for both sides: If not enough young men volunteered for the muster, they wanted to use a lottery to determine the necessary number.

The Union and the SPD proudly wanted to explain this message in detail in a press conference. The two parliamentary group leaders, Jens Spahn (CDU) and Matthias Miersch (SPD), had already confirmed the agreement at midday. A press release and a graphic were prepared.

The groups then met for their weekly meetings. And while people in the Union still believed that everything was going as planned, disturbing SMS messages came from the SPD parliamentary group.

There, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius is said to have formulated in very clear terms what he thinks of the compromise: absolutely nothing. This is what participants report. Other participants also reportedly expressed surprise that they had first read details of the alleged compromise in the media. The mood in the meeting changed. There were doubts about the legal admissibility of a lottery process. And also the impression this could leave on the public: that the potentially life-threatening service is a game of chance.

Outside, others had already been raising eyebrows against the model. There was talk of a “military service lottery”. Left party leader Sören Pellmann spoke of a “Lotto conscription” that reminded him of the “Hunger Games”. A daring comparison: In the book trilogy filmed by Hollywood, participants in a modern gladiator fight are determined by lottery, for whom the competition ends either in victory or death.

If conscription actually came about, community service would also have to be reactivated. In Germany, no one can be forced to serve as a weapon.

What happens next is unclear. According to reports, high-ranking coalition members are trying to continue negotiations behind the scenes. In any case, further consultations seem inevitable. Time is running out. Stage 1 of the new military service law should come into force on January 1st. It stipulates that all men in a year receive a muster form that they must fill out. Women would also receive the form, but without any obligation to fill it out. Because in order to recruit them, a change in the constitution would be necessary.

Now it is not even clear whether the first reading of the law will take place on Thursday. It is also completely open whether there will be a lottery at the end. Only one thing is certain: after the botched first election of judges, the wrangling over military service once again leaves the impression of a coalition in which agreements have a short half-life.