Macron launches drive to reintroduce military conscription in France

French President aims to attract young men and women to armed forces as Europe prepares for future security threats from the east

French President Emmanuel Macron, centre, with Chief of Defence Staff Fabien Mandon, right, and his predecessor Thierry Burkhard in November last year. AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to reintroduce military conscription in France on a voluntary basis in a major speech as Europe prepares for a future of military challenges from the east.

"The president will make announcements that will respond to the younger generation's desire to engage itself in the armed forces, but above all to respond to the army's needs in the face of increasing perils," an adviser to Mr Macron said.

The president's speech is scheduled for midday on Thursday in the south-eastern town of Varces, at the headquarters of the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade. Officials have not confirmed the structure of the scheme but it is believed to follow the call-up characteristics of conscription, is time-limited and would form a distinct type of military service aimed at boosting French army numbers.

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According to French media the scheme in its first stage would be voluntary, remunerated and last 10 months.

The speech will stress "the importance of preparing the nation, and its morale, in the face of growing threats", the Elysee said.

Mr Macron is expected to unveil a voluntary military service for French men and women aged 18 with the aim of attracting 3,000 people by next year, 10,000 by 2027 and 50,000 by 2035, weekly publication La Tribune Dimanche reported. Volunteers would be paid between €900 and €1,000 ($1,157) a month over a period of 10 months.

Members of the French Air and Space Academy march during the annual Bastille Day military ceremony on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France. Reuters

This framework has been branded as a new version of the general national service, which was launched in 2021 and widely viewed as a failure due to low participation rates and high costs.

Young French men and women have an overall positive opinion on the army and 56 per cent would consider a career in it, according to a research paper published in April last year by the army's research institute (IRSEM).

France abandoned mandatory military conscription in 1996 and transitioned to a professional army that today numbers about 200,000 personnel. After the end of the Cold War, the French army's budget underwent cuts. This trend has been reversed since the start of Mr Macron's mandate in 2017, with a doubling of the army's budget to €64 billion ($74 billion).

Today, many European countries are either reinstating compulsory service or expanding it. "It is not an isolated initiative of the president," the adviser added. "It inscribes itself in a European movement."

Countries geographically closest to Russia have led the way in strengthening their military personnel in the past years, particularly since its attempted invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

This summer, Denmark began introducing mandatory conscription for women. Germany is also moving closer to reintroducing compulsory military service with a new law passed this month that will require all men to register for potential military service by next year. Berlin wants to field Europe's largest military force by the end of the decade.

"Our intelligence services are issuing urgent warnings: at the very least, Russia is creating the option for itself to wage war against Nato by 2029," the German Foreign Ministry wrote on X on Tuesday. "We have to deter further Russian aggression, together with our partners and allies."

Mr Macron's expected announcements also come amid growing controversy in France over increased readiness for war. The country "must be ready to lose its children" against the Russian threat, Chief of Defence Staff Fabien Mandon said last week at an annual meeting with mayors, leading to angry comments from leading politicians from all sides of the political spectrum.

Earlier this week, Mr Macron clarified that he has no intention of sending French conscripts to fight in Ukraine against Russia. Europeans are holding in parallel intense discussions over setting up an international peacekeeping force to be posted in Ukraine after a ceasefire is reached.

"We really need to, right now, dispel any misleading idea that we're going to send our young people to Ukraine," Mr Macron told RTL radio on Tuesday. "That's not at all what this is about."

He talked about a broader exposure to the ways of the military. "It is very important that as many of our fellow citizens as possible understand what our armed forces are and how they work," he said.