France unveils voluntary military service plan as Europe boosts defence

France will introduce a new voluntary military service starting next summer, for people aged 18 and 19, the country's President Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday.

The move overhauls a pre-existing scheme to allow France to better respond to a more unstable geopolitical outlook including possible threats from Russia.

It is part of a broader shift across Europe, where nations who have long enjoyed the decades-long tranquillity of U.S. security guarantees are fretting about U.S. President Donald Trump's shifting priorities and Russia's aggressive posture.

French aides said it aims to bring France in line with nearly a dozen other European nations such as Germany and Denmark who have launched similar projects.

The initiative, expected to begin in 2026, reflects a growing trend across the continent: a strategic rethink of military readiness and civic duty in an increasingly volatile world.

With Russia’s actions in Ukraine continuing to reverberate across the region, the notion of national service is making a comeback in new and modernised forms.

Aides said Macron opposes obligatory national service, which then-President Jacques Chirac scrapped in 1996, and instead plans to overhaul the Service National Universel (SNU), a youth military scheme that never generated much interest.

Officials stress that the programme is not a return to compulsory conscription, but rather a way to reinforce the bond between the military and society.

"He does not wish to reintroduce compulsory national service," an Elysee official told reporters.

"He wants to enable willing young people to learn alongside the armed forces."

Under the proposal, France will invite young volunteers aged 18 and over to serve for roughly ten months, with participants receiving a monthly stipend of about €900–€1,000.

The plan aims to foster civic engagement and national cohesion — a concept Macron has described as rebuilding the “army-nation link.”

France intends to secure 100,000 reservists by 2030, aides said, up from around 47,000 as things stand. Its total miliatry force would then be around 210,000 by 2030.

A wider European trend

Across Europe, governments are revisiting military service models in response to Russia’s ongoing aggression and broader security uncertainties.

Lithuania, Latvia, and Sweden have reinstated some form of conscription in recent years.

Croatia and Estonia have strengthened reserve training.

Finland, Denmark, and Norway continue to rely on long-standing compulsory or gender-neutral service systems.

Each country’s approach differs, but the message is clear: Europe is recalibrating for an era where deterrence, readiness, and public participation in defence once again matter.

The French model seeks a balance — improving defence capabilities without igniting public resistance to compulsory military service. 

Analysts say the success of the plan will depend on two factors: public enthusiasm and institutional capacity.

“It’s a step toward strategic resilience,” one defence expert noted, “but France must ensure it attracts the right numbers — and that service feels meaningful, not symbolic.”

The Elysee pointed to poll data suggesting high support for the armed forces among 18- to 25-year-olds, who could benefit from defence budgets that have grown from €32 billion in 2017 to an expected €64 billion in 2027.

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