France to introduce voluntary military service amid threat from Russia | France

France is to introduce 10-month voluntary military service aimed mainly at young people aged 18 and 19, as concerns grow in Europe about the threat from Russia.

In a speech to troops at Varces-Allières-et-Risse in the French Alps, French President Emmanuel Macron said the service would begin operations by mid-2026 and would help France respond to “growing threats” on the global stage.

Nearly 30 years after France ended conscription, Macron said he would not go back on that decision, but added: “We need mobilization.”

“France cannot remain passive,” Macron said. He believed that there was a “thirst for engagement” among French youth, adding that a younger generation was “ready to stand up” for their nation.

Under the new military service, men and women, mostly aged 18 and 19, can voluntarily sign up for 10 months. They will be paid a minimum of €800 (£700) per month and will receive food and accommodation as well as a 75% discount on rail travel. They will be deployed “only on national soil,” Macron said. Minorities with specific qualifications, for example in engineering or medical skills, may be up to 25 years of age.

There is yet no suggestion that military service in France could again become compulsory, as it was before then-President Jacques Chirac abolished conscription in 1997.

“We cannot return to a time of recruitment,” Macron said. “This hybrid army model matches the emerging threats and risks, bringing together national service youth, reservists and active military.”

The plan would cost €2bn, which Macron called “an important and necessary effort”.

The plan aims to bring in 3,000 volunteers in 2026, which will increase to 10,000 by 2030. “My ambition for France is to reach 50,000 youth by 2036, depending on emerging threats,” Macron said. After the program, he said, participants can integrate into civilian life, become reservists or remain in the armed forces.

He said the plan was “inspired by the practices of our European partners… at a time when all our European allies are stepping up in response to the threat that weighs heavily on us all”.

The move is part of a broader shift across Europe, where countries that have long enjoyed the decades-long peace of US security guarantees are growing concerned about Donald Trump’s changing priorities and Russia’s aggressive posture.

Macron’s announcement brings France in line with about a dozen other European countries such as Germany and Denmark that have launched similar projects.

Military service is seen as a way to strengthen armies with recruits, as well as providing a large pool of potential reserves who could be called upon in case of future war.

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The French armed forces consist of approximately 200,000 active military personnel and 47,000 reserve soldiers, whose numbers are expected to grow to 210,000 and 80,000 respectively by 2030.

Macron’s office said polling data shows there is high support for the armed forces among 18- to 25-year-olds.

The president’s announcement comes after controversy over comments by French armed forces chief General Fabien Mandon, who sparked an uproar last week when he said France needed to fortify itself against possible future losses against Russian aggression.

He said, “What we lack… is the strength of character to accept suffering to protect who we are.” France, he said, “must accept losing its children”.

Macron has tried to downplay Mandon’s comments.

“We must immediately, immediately dispel any delusional idea that we are going to send our youth to Ukraine,” Macron told RTL radio on Tuesday, hinting at Russia’s impending full-scale invasion of the country in 2022.

Cédric Perrin, chairman of the French Senate’s Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defense and Armed Forces, defended Mandon. Perrin told Reuters: “His comments were taken out of context… but if it was necessary to be a little clearer to make the French understand the situation we are in, he was right to do so.”

Clémence Guette of the left-wing party La France Insoumise said about the new voluntary military service on RTL radio: “France is not at war and it cannot be a priority for young people.”

Sébastien Chenu, a lawmaker from Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally party, said the new voluntary military service was “going in the right direction”.

Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report.