When Germany’s governing coalition agreed to reinstate military conscription with a lottery system requiring all young men to serve, Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) stepped up in opposition.
While the populist party will not submit its own motion on reintroducing military conscription to the Bundestag―given internal disagreements―the eastern state associations led by Thuringian leader Björn Höcke have now successfully blocked the proposal.
A recent survey shows 54% of Germans support bringing back military conscription and 41% oppose it. Such polling suggests that the return of conscription is popular among some older Germans, but the AfD cites its concerns over potential involvement in foreign wars―not least the conflict in Ukraine.
Organized opposition started with a statement by the Eastern German state parliamentary group leaders entitled ‘No conscription for foreign wars.’ While party co-leader Alice Weidel has supported conscription in the past, she reportedly agreed to the decision to avoid exposing internal AfD conflicts in parliament.
