German Chancellor Friedrich Merz believes the country will eventually have to return to compulsory military service.

Axar.az reports, citing foreign media, that Merz made the remarks at the annual conference of the youth organization of the CDU/CSU bloc in Bonn. The event was broadcast by Phoenix TV.

“We introduced this new model of voluntary service,” he said. “I do not want to prejudge the outcome of the assessment of the military service model that we will carry out next year, but there is a reason why we included the return of compulsory military service in our main programme."

“And we are increasingly getting the feeling that things will not work without such an obligation,” the chancellor noted.

“I am confident that most of the younger generation, both young men and women, are ready to perform such service, including compulsory service, for the benefit of our society,” Merz added.

It should be noted that Germany introduced a voluntary military service model in December 2025, replacing compulsory military service, which was abolished in 2011.