André Wüstner, Chairman of the German Federal Armed Forces Association (Bundeswehrverband), foresees negative consequences for voluntary military service stemming from the planned Reserve Strengthening Law.
Speaking to “Welt” (Wednesday edition), Wüstner acknowledged that the bill’s elimination of the “double voluntariness” requirement aligns correctly with the “Zeitenwende” (turning point) narrative and serves the goal of improving the Bundeswehr’s readiness. However, he predicts that the subsequent mandatory call-up of reservists will negatively affect the number of volunteers signing up for military service.
Previously, when a soldier left the Bundeswehr and became a reservist, the concept of “double voluntariness” applied: both the reservist and their civilian employer had to consent to regular reserve exercises. The new Reserve Strengthening Law aims to change this arrangement. Under the draft, a reservist can only be mandatorily called up for exercises if they have served “less than six months of voluntary military service as a special civic commitment.”
For those who served longer periods, the law introduces a tiered system of mandatory duty. Reservists who served less than one year can be called for exercises until the age of 45. The draft stipulates that the duration of “individual reserve service cannot exceed three weeks per year.” Those who served between one and four years can be obligated to attend exercises until age 65, for a maximum of four weeks annually. For soldiers who served up to 13 years, the requirement is six weeks per year, while those who served longer face an annual maximum of twelve weeks. These figures represent the legal upper limits.
In practice, government sources indicate that this translates to roughly two weeks of training every one to two years. Employers will be required to release their employees for this mandatory reserve duty.
