German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius plans to recruit 20,000 volunteers to serve in the Bundeswehr in 2026 under a new law on military service, Spiegel magazine reported, citing a letter from the minister to Bundestag MPs from the CDU/CSU and SPD factions at his disposal.
The law on the modernization of military service came into force in Germany on January 1.
"In a letter to the parties, Social Democratic Party Minister Pistorius writes that he wants to recruit 20,000 volunteers for military service in the first year under the new law and expresses confidence that this will be achieved," the article states.
However, as the publication notes, the stated goal of Pistorius is "very ambitious".
Thus, in 2025, the Bundeswehr was able to recruit only a little more than 12 thousand young men and women, although the minister had calculated on 15 thousand.
