Lithuania’s State Defence Council has decided to introduce universal military conscription in 2032, President Gitanas Nauseda announced, BNS reports. Universal conscription will apply to men ages 18 to 22 years, replacing the current selective draft. Women will still be able to volunteer for military service. Nauseda said that about 7,500 young men would be drafted each year, up from the current annual draft of 5,000 people. Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevicius noted that the government had wanted a quicker transition to universal conscription, but the Lithuanian Armed Forces stated that it would only be ready for the move by 2032. Earlier, the opposition Homeland Union proposed introducing universal conscription as of 2030, Lietuvos Rytas reported. Lithuania abolished compulsory military service in 2008 but reinstated partial conscription in 2015 following Russia’s annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula.
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