From Germany to Italy, how EU states move to recruit more soldiers

The NATO summit in The Hague raised the bar for defence resources to five per cent of GDP by 2035. In an international context marked by growing threats, from the war in Ukraine to terrorism, from energy security to the defence of critical infrastructures, and at the urging of US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly called for the cost of European defence not to be borne solely by the United States, the 32 Allies have decided to put their hands in their pockets. Having solved one issue, another one arises: the strengthening or reinforcement of the manpower of European armies. The threat posed by Russia in the east is too great to maintain a light structure that, if in the period following the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union proved to be not only economically viable but also functional in the geopolitical context, is now, with threats and fronts that are gradually proliferating, showing its cracks.

Germany is pushing ahead with rearmament and breaking the debt taboo in order to drastically increase the defence budget in record time, but "the money is not enough": the German army lacks soldiers, first and foremost, to cope with the eventuality of the so-called 'Ernstfall', the 'serious case', i.e. a war on the very territory of the Republic. A 'worst case' with which politics and civil society are confronted almost daily. And so it is on compulsory military service that the debate has shifted in Berlin, where Chancellor Friedrich Merz, in recent days, has even gone so far as to ask for help from companies, soliciting the willingness of managers to release employees in order to make military training possible. The Bundeswehr needs reservists, explained the leader of the Cdu. 'I believe that we are all of the opinion that it is worth defending this democracy and this freedom,' he punctuated, speaking at the German Confederation of German Industry Day, the Bdi. 'But this also has consequences for business. Money is not the decisive issue. The key issue is having qualified personnel. A reserve is necessary,' he continued. 'You will have to be prepared to allow your employees to train in the troops again,' he added, emphasising that he was referring to training periods of a few weeks. The Kanzler's statement was preceded by a speech of the Social Democratic Defence Minister, Boris Pistorius, who had said at the weekend that he wanted to provide 10,000 soldiers and 1,000 civilian employees to the army by the end of this year. This statement is reflected in the budget approved in recent hours by the cabinet, where the resources for as many recruitments appear. The need is actually even greater: there is talk of around 50-60 thousand missing soldiers to meet the needs of the transatlantic alliance. Not an easy 'hole' to fill. The Bundeswehr currently has 183 thousand soldiers and 81 thousand civilians. To promote the entry of new recruits, the debate on the compulsory military service abolished in 2011 by Angela Merkel's conservatives has long since been reopened. A mistake, noted Merz, who has already brought up the need to provide for 'compulsory elements' in the matter. "If you focus on voluntariness we will not succeed. We should reactivate the compulsory draft,' echoed the president of the reservists' association Patrik Sensburg, speaking to Rnd. The Germans could then decide on compulsory military service for women: 'If there was a will of the majority on this,' was his proposal, 'I wouldn't know who could defect in the Bundestag.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine triggered a lively debate on the current recruitment system on the European continent. Many countries questioned whether their systems were adequate to meet the new needs of the armed forces in today's international environment. Thus, the need to proceed with an increase in the number of personnel and to pursue the goal of increasing the number of units under arms emerged. Countries are looking to the reserve, i.e. the pool of forces that work for the military without being part of it full-time, but can be quickly called up to increase its volume in the event of a crisis.

France has determined that it will increase the number of reservists under arms from the current 40,000 to over 100,000 by 2035. Poland has embarked on a major programme of increased spending that is expected to bring it to 300,000 active-duty military personnel by 2035. In some countries, such as the US, Spain and the UK, reservists are also civilians who maintain a certain degree of military aptitude through training that keeps them busy for an average of one weekend a month. This activity can be carried out on an individual basis, or as part of specific permanent military units of reservists, of which the British Territorial Army is an example. In France, there are two categories of which the military reserve is composed: the operational reserve and the town reserve.

A reserve that can also draw on "personnel without previous military experience". This is one of the solutions considered in the Defence Plan that is on Minister Guido Crosetto's desk. A 33-page report that puts in black and white what the next objectives of Via XX Settembre, in the light also of a new communication plan that could create the so-called "culture of defence". The document, dated 8 May 2025, contemplates the possibility of extending a reserve military to respond to the shortcomings of the armed forces to counteract the "effects of the ageing of the workforce military". The document speaks explicitly of a "review of the reserve instrument" that also involves personnel "without previous military experience"..