France will introduce a voluntary military service next year that can be converted into compulsory service in times of crisis, President Emmanuel Macron announced on Thursday.
The programme will begin with 3,000 volunteers and gradually expand to 10,000 by 2030 and 50,000 by 2035. The 10-month service is intended to bolster France’s professional armed forces.
“In this uncertain world, this hybrid model, ready for all contingencies, must prevail,” Macron said during a visit to a barracks in Varces near Grenoble. “We need a mobilization of the nation to defend ourselves, not against a particular enemy, but to be prepared and respected.”
France abolished compulsory military service in 1996 after the end of the Cold War.
The voluntary service mainly targets 18- and 19-year-olds, who can sign up on an annual mobilization day. The military will select the most suitable candidates, and in a major crisis, the government and parliament could extend the service to others identified during the mobilization day, effectively making it mandatory.
After one month of basic training, volunteers will serve nine months in military units performing the same tasks as the regular military, strictly within France. The monthly pay will be €800 ($927), with meals and lodging covered, and participants will receive job placement support afterwards.
Volunteers will become reservists and may choose to join the professional military. Macron said the programme will require expanded infrastructure and training capacity, with a budget of €2 billion allocated for its roll-out.